I capture the castle
by Mizu-Tenshi
Summary: Fai's magic cannot bring back the past. Ashura's dreams cannot create a future. Only snow and ice lie in Celes. Only the castle will remember their story. Some spoilers
1. Chapter I

It took me ages to get this up because I was trying to come up with a suitable summary. My very first multi-chapter Tsubasa: RC fic that isn't made up of drabbles! I was working on the next chapter to '_A Dummy's guide'_ when I came up with this. I'm trying to create a sort of bittersweet feel throughout this whole fic. Anyway, whether or not I'm successful, please enjoy!

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I capture the castle

Chapter I

The land was a single sheet of white spreading eternally into the distance, the sky a parallel plane of endless navy, dark and dotted with stars. Cotton flakes of snow drifted lazily across the barren land, the wind whispering across the frozen earth as it danced through the snow. The two men trudged through endless amounts of white, working their legs hard to move against the high snow that hindered them.

"Damn, it's cold," Kurogane grumbled, his breath coming out in short wisps of white vapour.

"Then you should come better equipped, Kuro-pin," Fai tugged the hems of his inner coat, appearing completely at home in their icy environment. He smiled carelessly at nothing in particular, his gaze drifting slowly across his new surroundings with a mixture of curiosity and childish delight shining in his blue eyes.

They made it several metres through the thick, numbing snow. Traipsing their way across the infinite white when the two men were shortly joined by two children making their way to them from the east.

"There's something that way," Syaoran pointed in the direction from which they had just came. "It looks like a town or some kind of settlement. Sakura-hime and I only went to the outer edges of it."

Sakura stood wrapped in Fai's outer, fur-lined coat. The whiteness of it almost blended perfectly with the snow and succeeded in making the young girl look like a well-rolled snowball. "We didn't get a good look but we couldn't see any people about," she said as she lifted up the back of the coat so that it would not trail across the ground.

Kurogane snorted. "Who would live in a place like this anyway?" The desolate, bleak, and not to mention freezing environment was not particularly endearing to anyone, least of all the gruff ninja.

"You never know," Fai smiled, "some people might not have a choice. We should check it out, right?"

It was times like this, when their surroundings looked the least hospitable that they were reminded of their purpose - more accurately, Syaoran's purpose - in each world and that they could not simply jump world when the one they landed in was not to their liking. They had a feather to find and a whole heap of snow to search.

It was times like this that Fai wished Sakura's feathers were multicoloured and came with sparkling lights. A giant arrow from the heavens saying 'Sakura's feather here' would have been helpful too, but he digressed.

The settlement consisted of grey, listless buildings that huddled together in the snow. They were bizarre, tiny little homes with curved roofs and sweeping archways. Paved roads snaked through the town, curving this way and that and sometimes ending abruptly in snow. No smoke or lights betrayed any sign of life within the town.

In the distance, a castle levitated eerily above the town. Its crumbling torrents and spiralling peaks were worn, eroded by time and harsh weather. A stump of what it had once been. Only the luminescent wing-like projections remained stunning, shimmering as the starlight refracted across it.

"Mokona senses something!"

The company turned to their fifth and often over-looked yet most important travelling companion. Without the white creature there would have been no journey at all.

"Is it the feather?" Syaoran asked almost hastily.

The white creature paused for a second. "I don't know," was its final verdict, "there's a lot of different kinds of power drifting about. Mokona can't tell."

The hint of disappointment was erased when Syaoran smiled gratefully at it. "Maybe we should search the area. If we find people, we can get some information," he suggested. If they could only question the locals about any strange occurrences or legends then finding the feather would be much easier.

They approached the town with mixed feelings. Ruined pillars that seemed to hold no meaning surrounded the entire settlement. Cracked stone littered the base of each column, icy and stiff with cold.

Fai paused before one of the columns, placing a tentative hand on the frozen stone.

"This is…"

His heart jumped a little, but his inward alarm never reached the carefully constructed outer mask.

"What is it, Fai-san?" Syaoran asked as he too approached the pillar of stone that punctured the white snow.

Fai's hand slid off of the stone structure. He smiled. "Why don't we split up? We'll cover more ground this way."

For a brief moment, he felt Kurogane's gaze burn his back but it was gone by the time he turned round to face him.

The ninja was pointedly watching Sakura and Mokona talk. His stood protectively, ready for anything that happened. He did it more often, and thought that no one noticed how he trailed behind the company in case of attack, a surly protector or a reluctant bodyguard. His current stance was wary but showed no indication that he had ever been looking at Fai.

"Well…" Syaoran hesitated at the idea splitting up again. The town was not particularly large and most of it was in ruins.

Kurogane sighed. "Fine, I'll go this way with the idiot and we'll meet back here in an hour."

Syaoran paused then nodded.

"Don't worry, Syaoran-kun, Kuro-wan's got a big sword after all. He'll protect me," Fai laughed as they made their way in opposite directions.

Sakura and Syaoran only had time to hear Kurogane yell, "I might kill you first!" before a sudden gush of wind drowned out their voices.

The children scoped out the east of town, walking down the paved roads in comfortable silence.

Mokona hesitated, wondering whom to follow. Sakura had that nice fluffy coat to cuddle in but Kurogane sauntered down the grey path just waiting to be teased. The white manjuu opted to follow the latter.

"Kyaa! Kuro-puppy just wanted to be alone with Fai!" It squealed with delight, hopping safely into Fai's arms.

"That's not it!" Kurogane flared, then turning to the mage said, "Hey, do you know where you're going?"

"Of course not, Kuro-muu, I've never been to this world after all," Fai smiled and continued to lead the way.

The ninja glowered at the mage's back. Fai's pretence did not amuse him the slightest. "Don't play dumb!" he snapped. "This is your world, isn't it?"

The corners of Fai's lips dropped into what was not quite a frown, but a half a millimetre too short to be classified as a smile.

"No."

He spoke plainly. One who did not know him would almost call his manner curt.

However, Kurogane had been with the blond for long enough to know the mage's cheery habits. He also knew that there was usually a cool, calculated mind somewhere behind all the girlish giggling and idiocy Fai displayed to the rest of the world. "I said - " Kurogane bristled. He took it as an insult to his intelligence whenever the wizard tried to conceal things from him.

"It's not," Fai interrupted. "It looks similar though, very similar. That's why I was surprised…but from walking around I can tell that a lot of things are different." He turned back to gaze at the town, and more importantly to the crumbling castle in the distance. "For instance, there are no steps leading to the castle in this world, and the shapes of all the houses are slightly different. There was a town square in my world too."

Kurogane stared sceptically but let the blond drop it at that. He tested a door to one of the houses at random. It was locked.

"Where are all the people?"

"Maybe they've gone out?"

"Don't be stupid!" He snapped as he pushed at another door. It swung open rather forcefully under the strength of his push and he stumbled in.

Stumps of candle dimly lighted the walls. It was a large tavern painted in dark grey and navy blue with sturdy oak barstools and tables arranged in circles across the cold stone floor. More than a dozen pairs of eyes stared at them, blue, green and grey pairs full of apprehension and traces of hostility.

Fai peeked from behind Kurogane at the gathering. He realised that the two of them standing on the stone floor before the open door was the last thing the townsfolk were expecting.

Kurogane's foreign clothes were especially unusual. As for Fai…his garb was only vaguely similar to theirs. Most of their clothes were either white of blue with the occasional appearance of black or gold. They were heavy, made for winter wear and sometimes lined with fur. Their robes trailed to the floor, split at the leg to reveal black trousers and boots.

"Well, this is interesting," Fai murmured. Kurogane gave a noncommittal grunt.

"Who are you people?"

A woman emerged from the crowd wearing a similar but more feminine style robe and glasses; her brown hair was tied into two firm plaits on either side of her head. Around her, the crowd gathered, ready to throw them out or invite them in at a word from the woman.

"Who are you people?" she asked again.

XX

"There's an epidemic going around?"

Regrouped and rested, the four travellers and their transportation device sat at one of the sturdy tables in a semicircle across from their host. Fai supposed that they should be thankful that they had been welcomed, albeit reluctantly and warily, into the midst of the congregation instead of being thrown out or even attacked.

The woman had introduced herself as Kaede Saitou, the acting head of town. Acting, because the current leader had fallen to their latest crisis.

"It's not chickenpox, is it?" Fai asked and grinned like a simpleton.

"It's because of that stupid castle!" a voice in the crowd raised it just enough to be heard over the uncomfortable shuffling and whispers amongst the tavern folk.

"The castle has caused the epidemic?" Syaoran asked, his natural curiosity piqued by this sudden information.

"Yes," Kaede nodded. Her gestures and speech were a good deal more restrained than that of the crowd, who seemed frustrated and angry at their situation. "We've tried many times to destroy it but it is shielded with protective magic from a hundred years ago and all the wizards have died out."

"What makes you so sure that it's the castle causing this outbreak?" Syaoran inquired.

"Last time I checked, lumps of stone couldn't make you sick," Kurogane grunted. His surly comments were his way of letting his opinions be known without having to feel involved.

"It's not just any castle."

"It's cursed!" Someone from the crowd yelled, followed by angry and fearful mutters and cries of agreement.

Fai chuckled slightly. The sound of his laughter was an unfamiliar noise that echoed lightly across the gloomy walls of the tavern. "Now, doesn't this sound familiar?" he smiled. "An old creepy castle…curses…"

"Like in Jade," Kurogane finished.

Syaoran nodded. "By the way, what is the name of this country?"

Kaede propped her elbows on the table, resting her head in the cradle created by her linked hands. Candlelight flashed across her glasses, obscuring her eyes for one brief second.

"I hear that in the warmer parts of this world, our frigid little country is known by different names. However we have always called this land by one name," she said, pushing her glasses to the bridge of her nose. "We call it Ceres."

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Ah, that was fun! So, is this country really Ceres or just a look-alike world with the same name? Why is it different from the one Fai remembers? Answers will come shortly (depending on how fast I update) in the next chapter. This is the first in a long time since I've done a chaptered story (the Dummy's guide doesn't count) so comments are always appreciated. Pairings, if any, are still unknown. 


	2. Chapter II

Thank you everyone for being so patient. Here's a long over-due update. Enjoy!

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I capture the castle

Chapter II

The snow outside was beginning to fall heavily now, turning from faint flecks that softly drifted downwards into large balls of snow, pounding into the earth.

The group settled down comfortably to hear the history of this strange, frigid country, this country called Ceres, and of the legend and myth behind the latest epidemic. The other townsfolk gathered around the table with cautious, wary glances at the newcomers.

"It's a well-known story," Kaede continued, resting her head in her hands. "Hundreds of years ago there reigned a strong, powerful king who gave peace to the land of Ceres."

Kurogane glanced at Fai through the corners of his eyes. The mage was smiling casually into the green liquid of the drink that they had been given, stirring it without a reason. The ninja took advantage of Fai's preoccupation to scrutinise the wizard further. Though Fai's eyes seemed focussed on his drink, they had a far-away look as Kaede's voice washed over them all.

"However, the king was also plagued by horrible dreams of destruction and ruin, which would have driven him mad, if not for the potions created by one of his wizards. A very skilled wizard who cared deeply for the king."

Syaoran and Sakura leaned forward, straining to hear. Kaede's voice whispered low, soft syllables that escaped her lips and floated skywards.

Kurogane did not take his eyes off of Fai, though he pretended to look elsewhere. He did not know what to think of the wizard. Fai was childish and immature, hopelessly clumsy and naïve, but then he was also wise beyond his years, serious, and graceful and focussed - a living paradox.

However, one thing was certain, the wizard was trying to conceal something, something that would no doubt prove to be important to them. Kurogane already had his suspicions about Ceres, though Fai had adamantly denied this Ceres being the same as the one he had come from.

Kaede continued, pushing her glasses to the bridge of her nose. "So the king continued to reign over Ceres, drinking potions to ward off the dream, until…"

"Until?" Syaoran asked, almost afraid to seem eager.

Shadows of the falling snow outside cast dark patterns on her face. Kaede frowned, her expression lost to the shadows. "The wizard who made these potions came across a strange ingredient, a very powerful one. Deciding that it would enhance the ward in his potions, he added it to them and gave this new potion to the king," she explained.

"W - What happened?" Sakura stuttered; she was every bit as enraptured as Syaoran.

Kaede shook her head. "This ingredient was indeed powerful, too powerful for the king to bear. It ended up having a reverse effect on the king. His majesty could not sleep and was forever plagued with dreams of ruin and damnation, Ceres crumbled and the king was driven almost to insanity."

"This is going to be a sad story, isn't it? I don't really like sad stories," Fai said with an awkward grin. His grasp on his cup tightened, though nobody noticed, at least he thought that nobody had noticed, hoped that nobody noticed.

Kaede, exasperated by her constantly slipping glasses, took the off and polished them. She looked tired, so tired that if she closed her eyes for too long they might not open again. Despite her fatigue, she managed to smile and continue.

"As for the wizard, he could not bring himself to kill the mad king. Guilt-ridden, he had no choice but to seal the evil power within the king and lock it up within the castle. They say that his ghost watches over the castle even now," she sighed, signalling an end to her story.

Silence washed over her audience like a spell that still held power, her diminishing voice kept them silent until even the echo of her words had completely faded away.

Then the spell broke.

"So what does all that have to do with what's happening now?" asked Syaoran.

"That evil ingredient is cursed. As the years go by, the seal is weakening and its evil power is leaking into the town, at least that is what we believe," Kaede said.

The townsfolk around her began to shift and mutter and come alive. "If the castle were to vanish, the curse would go too," said a voice from the crowd of faces.

"But no matter how hard we try, there's no destroying it," another said.

There was a collective murmuring of agreement, which broke into a fervent, whispered discussion about the castle and the legend of the king and the wizard, but that in turn died down as Kaede spoke again.

"It continues to loom over us, a constant reminder of that wizard's sorrow and guilt."

Night loomed over the land. It had stolen up to them so silently that no one had noticed it until the stars began to come out one by one.

Kaede let them stay in the rooms behind the tavern, _a_ room, to be more precise. It was a simple, large, square room big enough for all four of them (and one white manjuu) lit by candles standing in clumps on wooden shelves.

The room itself was large and unadorned. The walls were white, the floor was cold marble, a double window let in the starlight and nothing more. There was nothing else. No furniture, no decorations, no ornaments, no fireplace, no hints or clues to the world's history or culture. The room was as bare as the white snow outside.

A villager stopped by with food and bedding, apologising that they would have to sleep on the floor for a night before hurrying out, leaving the four of them and one white manjuu alone in a large, cold room.

"Well that was certainly interesting," Fai stretched himself out against his bed roll, yawning. "I have a feeling that this will be like Jade."

"Find the truth behind the legend and you'll find the feather, right?" Kurogane grunted. He sat with his back against the wall, arms folded across his chest, far from the others, though not too far as would exclude him from their conversation completely.

Sakura struggled with her blankets. There seemed to be a dozen duvets and sheets necessary to keep out Ceres' nightly chill. Kurogane watched her teeter under the weight of the bed stuff until Syaoran graciously lent her a hand. The ninja then turned to the mage lazing about on his pile of blankets, fixing him with a cold glare.

"So mage, what is the truth behind the legend?"

Fai almost let a shocked expression surface from beneath his mask, but covered it almost instantaneously.

"Eh? How am I supposed to know?" the wizard feigned innocence but that only irked him even more.

"Do I have to beat it out of you? 'Fess up! What are you hiding?" he shouted.

Sakura dropped her blankets and Syaoran was looking at the nervously but Fai took everything in his stride. Digging into the pockets of his coat, the wizard produced several items from their depths.

"Hmm? Well I have a bar of chocolate, a yoyo I found in the last world, a really shiny pebble…" the mage rambled on, pulling out stranger and weirder things each time.

It was either incredibly stupid or incredibly smart. However, Fai's dodging tactics did not amuse Kurogane the slightest; in fact it had just the opposite impact. Reaching for the nearest hard object, his hand found a tray the villager had used to bring them food and threw it at the mage's head.

Fai ducked just in time, though a few blond strands were severed from his head. The tray spun through the air and shattered against the opposite wall.

Sakura, who had just gathered up her blankets, dropped them again in surprise.

"Kuro-muu, that was mean, you could have hit me!"

"I was trying to hit you!"

They must have been on the verge of physical conflict, because Syaoran had taken it upon himself to intervene. Granted, he helped Sakura with the blankets first but Syaoran never left his princess in danger. Sakura had been perilously close to being smothered by all of the feather down duvets and sheets.

"Kurogane-san, Fai-san, please don't fight!" Syaoran implored them. He had such a serious expression that Fai would have laughed but Syaoran turned towards Kurogane instead and said; "If Fai-san doesn't want to tell us anything then we should respect that. Either way, as long as we find the feather, it doesn't matter."

Kurogane said nothing. The gruff ninja studied the boy's face; it always seemed so serious and determined.

"Whatever. I can't stand to be around this guy for too long," the ninja shrugged and the tension visibly eased, though accusing Kurogane of having a soft spot for the younger boy would have instantly caused an immediate elevation in tension.

Thankfully, no one thought of voicing any allegations to the gruff, battle-hardy warrior becoming 'an old softy' and the group managed to slip into deep slumber without anything else being broken.

XX

A floating castle was quite a sight to behold. Shimmering almost eerily, the luminescent wings of the castle was the only thing that had withstood the years of weathering, they unfurled in a dazzling display of luminous lights, shinning and shimmering in the grey of the morning.

The group stood captured in its shadow, gazing up at the crumbling spires and worn battle turrets. Long flights of steps wound around the floating fortress, steps missing here and there as it was limply suspended in mid-air.

"It's guarded by magic," Syaoran murmured as he stared at the ruined castle.

All of them had come to the conclusion that the castle was the treasure chest concealing all the clues and secrets that would lead to Sakura's feather, the only problem was in finding a key that would fit the lock. In other words, finding a way in.

Kurogane watched his breath come out in short wisps of vapour. The arrival of dawn did not make the air any warmer or the snow any less cold. If he were the sort of person who cared about these sorts of things, he would have called it a miserable day. Clouds constantly overcast the sky, the snow mounted on and froze over, and the sun bestowed upon them a pathetic grey light.

Just as he was about to snap about something and suggest moving on, a small, white snowball bounced on top of his head.

"We could call Yuuko for help!" it spoke, and Kurogane realised that the snowball was actually their little, annoying inter-dimensional tour guide.

"What would we give her though? I can't think of anything of value I have left, except…" Syaoran trailed off, glancing doubtfully at the sword sheathed by his waist.

"You'll need that," Kurogane threw Mokona into a pile of snow. Hopefully, the thing would get lost amongst all that white.

"I can always get another one," Syaoran said, though he also seemed reluctant to part with Hien.

Kurogane gave a small, contemptuous snort. "A true swordsman would not part with his sword so casually."

"That right, remember the huge ruckus Kuro-min put up when he had to leave his sword?" Fai piped.

"You don't have to pay straight away."

All four of the roving group of travellers turned to Mokona, which was rather hard, as the only thing really visible amongst the snow was the red jewel on its forehead.

"Yuuko-san doesn't do it often, but sometimes you can pay after the service has been granted," Mokona explained, nodding wisely, or at least trying to.

XX

"Though I was surprised," Fai murmured as they began climbing the steps towards the castle. "Usually we have to give up a personal item but this time we're giving her something that does not even belong to us. Unusual, isn't it?"

"I wouldn't put it past her," Kurogane muttered. His attempts to barter with the witch had gone appaulingly wrong and now he was in a foul mood, fouler than usual. "In the end, that witch will probably take something we really need. We're letting her walk all over us," he spat.

"Kurogane-san…" Syaoran began, but the irritated ninja did not let him finish.

"You heard that dimension-hag! She gets whatever she wants in the castle!"

"We all agreed to this," Fai happily skipped along the crumbling steps, he seemed to have no qualms in the prospect of entering the castle. "You should have protested when you had the chance, Kuro-rin, or maybe you can't protest," the wizard pulled a face at the ninja, accelerating up the long flights of stairs in order to dodge Souhi and Kurogane's gratuitous cursing.

Climbing up the stairs took longer than they expected. With breaks in between when Sakura, no matter how much she denied it, could no longer take any more climbing, the sun had risen and fallen and the snow began drifting towards them as they finally reached the double doors that would allow them admission into the castle.

The oak doors were rotting before their very eyes; the intricately carved floral pattern had been worn until it became something indistinguishable that it practically fell apart under a touch.

A cloud of dust rose into the air. Cobwebs hung from corner to corner and laced in dust. Shadows obscured the path forward. The group of hapless travellers glanced at each other once and stepped into the ancient castle.

The floor was as cold as ice. Their footsteps banished the coast of dust and grime, leaving a trail behind them like footprints in snow, echoing softly. Though even with the gloom, dust, dirt and cobwebs, there was no masking its grandeur. Columns of marble spiralled into an infinite domed ceiling, ice blue markings danced across the glassy walls. There were no sharp angles here, only smooth contours and curves that made up the architecture of the building.

Fai suddenly stopped. Kurogane could feel the wizard's presence halting before the grand hall.

One by one, they all stopped and turned towards the motionless wizard.

"Fai-san?" Sakura looked at him curiously but either he could not hear her or he chose not to reply.

Kurogane glanced at what Fai was staring at, what had halted him so suddenly, what had transformed him from his usual, amiable self into something empty yet tense.

Not more than six feet ahead of them, the hall opened up into a much larger chamber. Light shone from a hole in the roof, picking out a sparkling pool in silver light, shunning everything that lay beyond the spotlight. It was a miracle that the water had not dried up over time. A net-like thing arched over the water, perfectly poised in the act of embracing the water.

As if someone had suddenly let go of the traps binding Fai's feet, the wizard lurched forward, almost stumbling as he raced past them.

"Fai -san?" Syaoran called, his voice echoing across the hall.

The wizard ignored him.

Kurogane did not know why he ran after Fai when he did. There was no explaining the premonition he was having of something inexplicably bad about to occur.

Fai had come to a halt by the pool and was staring into its depths. As Kurogane caught up to him, he skidded to a stop but could not quite see what was in the pool behind the net.

"Hey! Don't go running off like that!"

"It was wrong."

Fai was looking at something Kurogane could not see; his expression was hidden by his blond bangs but he spoke with a soft, slightly trembling, tenor that shifted the webs of dust.

"Kaede's story…it was all wrong," Fai said.

Mokona hopped towards them and jumped into the air. A projection of light shot from its forehead and an image of the dimension witch was cast along the far wall.

Yuuko's hair tumbled over her shoulders in a mass of black locks, her smoky eyes were unreadable and her lips ruby red.

"My payment," she gestured to them, and for some reason seeing those lips part into a smile broke the bars of the cage in Fai's chest and set his fear free to rage throughout his body.

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The story can sometimes prove false. What is it the Yuuko wants? Find out in the next installment! 


	3. Chapter III

Ah, finally chapter three is up. Now I can have a party! I always seem to write five pages per chapter. I must make them shorter!

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I capture the castle

Chapter III

_The chessboard was etched from a square of mahogany wood; the white and black squares were perfectly lacquered onto the dark board with golden leaf running along each intersection. Black and white pieces stood in their rightful places as stationary, faceless objects chipped from black onyx and mother of pearl._

_A hand moved a white pawn. The nails and not the fingers grasped the shiny piece by its head and placed it just as delicately on a square ahead._

_"A battle is much like a game of chess. However, of all the pieces the king is the most important and most useless of pieces, do you understand?" the hand tapped it long nails across the board, waiting for its opponent to make a move._

_"Yes."_

_A black pawn moved in response. A white knight jumped through the ranks. Pieces began to dance, shifting from one square to another. They were selfish dancers and knocked out those who were already occupying a square that they wanted._

_Each piece fell to another and rolled helplessly across the board until it was picked up and put to a side. Discarded. Forgotten._

_Nails toyed with the casualties of war, observing them in their gleaming brilliance._

_"The king's movements are limited; it needs to constantly be protected, and once it is captured that is the end. Game over. So much like a battle."_

_Rooks moved in long lines, knights reared their horses for battle and the two sides of black onyx and white pearl charged at each other's king._

XX

Fai wasn't sure if he had heard what the cost of getting into the castle had been or if he had known all along what Yuuko would ask for. He certainly had not heard her speak, only seen her lips move over a vague buzzing noise that sounded much like a voice without a meaning. Deep inside of him something was telling him to run. Deep inside of him something was gnawing its way through him, shouting at him to run away. It did not matter where he went as long as it was away from here. Run, run, run, it screamed over and over again. Run, run, run.  
Fai did not run. He smiled.

"With no disrespect, Yuuko-san, I thought I paid you so that I would never have to come back here," he said in a voice he strained to keep from quivering.

The dimension witch smiled a little deeper, letting the whites of her teeth show behind ruby red lips.

"Did you? You must have misunderstood something then," the witch waved a casual hand at the screen of projection coming from Mokona's head. "I only grant the means on which your wishes may be granted, not the wish itself. By providing you with Mokona, I still held up my side of the bargain."

"Somehow, I feel cheated," Fai laughed, though his voice was too flat to be even considered laughing.

"Well, in any case, I think that my payment is due," Yuuko gestured towards them to 'fork up' as one would say. She was not the most patient of people.

"I don't suppose you would like something else instead," Fai suggested, though he already knew the answer. It would be the same, nonchalant refusal he had received when he wanted to substitute his payment of his tattoo for his staff. Just being enclosed within the castle's walls made his back burn uncomfortably.

"A price once paid can never be returned. A wish granted must be compensated," Yuuko said, as if this was a mantra by which her business was run.

The light beaming upon the pool made the water sparkle in shine as if it had a life of its own. The breath of wind sweeping from the rift in the ceiling stirred the faint cobwebs, whispering frozen words into the darkness of the hall. Yuuko's projection shone amongst the dust, almost luminous in the gloom.

Sakura tiptoed forwards, closer to the pool and closer to the image of the dimension witch. "Please, Yuuko-san, is it fair that only Fai-san feel the brunt of the price? This is something we all wished for," she pleaded.

Yuuko shook her head. "This was also agreed before-hand. It's unfortunate, but you should have protested when you had the chance."

Kuorgane's 'I told you so' face was grim. The shadows held their breath and skirted around the edges of the hall, waiting, watching for what the silent figure, cloaked in white, would do now.

Fai's expression was hidden behind blond bangs. Darkness graced his face with a gossamer veil, obscuring even the liquid sky in his eyes.

"What if I say no? What if I refuse to pay?"

Words slipped into the air, lighter than the feathery cobwebs, heavier than the castle of stone.

Yuuko's expression was not an angry one. Fai wondered what an angry dimension witch looked like. Yuuko's lips twisted into something of a smile. For now, she only looked amused, much like a cat, watching a mouse struggle between its claws, may find the plight of the mouse vaguely amusing. Yet what about the mouse? Fai was feeling a lot like the mouse at the moment.

"Mokona," Yuuko said; just one simple word and the white creature opened its mouth.

Fai was not sure whether the ground began to tremble of if that was simply his leg shaking. He wanted to protest, wanted to stop what was happening but he found that he could not move. The pool began to shine an eerie blue and from the waters rose the markings of a phoenix. Mokona swallowed the crest in his mouth in one gulp. Yuuko smiled and disappeared.

The silence that was left in the wake of Yuuko's absence was heavier than a mountain; it was a thick blanket covering them all, but through the fabric, the cloth was beginning to tear.

Perhaps one could call it a creak. Perhaps it was more of a groan. Perhaps it was really more of a series of cracks in wood and the chink of glass straining and breaking.

Fai suddenly seemed to realise what was happening. Of course, he had known all along what would happen. The water suddenly gushed and began to swirl. From the watery depths, several explosions gave the hall a mush needed rinse.

"Chi!" Fai yelled at the net hung over the surface of the water. The net flattened itself over the surface, covering the whole surface with the entirety of its body.

There were several loud bangs and something that sounded vaguely reminiscent of an animal trying to break free of its cage.

Sakura squeaked and backed away. There were dents in the barricade the net had constructed and were only getting worse as the thumps and thuds became louder and more desperate. It was obvious to anyone that the net would not hold. Fai felt his fists clench. Though he was willing all his strength into her, he did not think that Chi would be able to stand much more. As much as it pained him, he did not want to see his servant and only friend for many years shatter into a thousand meaningless pieces.

"Chi, he's going to pierce straight through you! Stand aside, Chi!" he ordered.

Obediently, the net changed its form to a thinner, more agile shape and slid away until it covered only a half of the water. Wood and glass fragments floated upon the sparkling surface. A hand grabbed the rim and a figure heaved itself out of the water.

He was tall and powerful, lithe and graceful. He was beautiful and willowy. Even drenched in water, nothing could detract from his regal splendour. He stood at full height, black hair tumbling over his shoulders and eyes piercing through the gloom, into the heart of the darkness. The seal had preserved him from the brutal effects of time, leaving him unchanged.

Syaoran moved to shield his princess with his body, even the grip on Kurogane's sword hilt tightened with caution, but Fai allowed a small, wistful smile to grace his lips as he stepped forward and bowed to the man.

"Ashura-ou," he whispered faintly, trying not to tremble. "Did you sleep well, Ashura-ou?"

Fai could feel his mind clawing at him, telling him even now to run and not to look back. He would not run though, he would continue to mask his feelings with a smile.

Ashura glanced around the castle, taking in everything in his sweeping gaze; the cobwebs strung from corner to corner, the layers of dust, the crumbling pillars and the starlight shining onto the glistening pool. Fury sparked in his eyes. He drew himself up and stepped forward, close enough to strike the mage if he wanted to.

"The castle! Fai, what have you done to the castle?" he demanded.

Fai stepped back, still smiling. "I haven't done anything. This is what happens when Time is allowed to run amok. You've been sleeping, Ashura-ou, sleeping for a very long time, over a hundred years in fact."

Ashura's eyes narrowed into hateful slits. "Who's fault do you think that is? What has happened to the castle? Where are all the guards? Who are these people?" he gestured lastly at Fai's companions in their strange, foreign clothes and odd colouring. He could feel their wary eyes upon him. The tension charged the air with an electric pulse.

"They're travellers," Fai explained. "These people have come here looking for something very important - a feather with a strange crest on it."

If one did not know him well, he would have seemed almost at ease speaking to his king but his mask was slowly beginning to crack; his smiles were not quite bright enough and his voice was becoming shaky and unstable.

"A feather?" Ashura regarded them suspiciously. The man in black in particular was taking no pains in hiding his dislike for him. Ashura switched his attention to his wizard until one of the travellers, the young boy, spoke.

"Please, Your Majesty, perhaps it could be locked away in a powerful artefact of yours or maybe there have been strange occurrences. We heard from the townspeople that there has been a strange epidemic going around," Syaoran said with all the politeness of one addressing royalty.

"You are looking for a feather?" Ashura said slowly, as if all the years being asleep had made him forget how to speak.

Fai pressed a finger to his cheek, pretending to ponder something. The grasp on his mask seemed to have been restored somewhat and his manner was more confident than it had been.

"Say, there's a lot artefacts in the treasury room, right?" Fai's question was directed at no one in particular. "Assuming that no one has raided this place over the past hundred years, I suppose that is the most likely place your feather will be. If you go down this passage and take the first set of stairs on the right you should find yourself in the treasury," he directed, indicating the path in which they should take.

Without a second's transition, Ashura's angry expression escalated into something much more venomous.

"Oh, I'm sorry! This is your castle after all. It's okay for them to look, isn't it?" Fai said, though it was apparent that he was not the least bit sorry at all.

Syaoran glanced worriedly at Ashura, who was glaring daggers at his wizard. He hesitated for a moment and said; "You won't come with us, Fai-san?" to which the wizard smiled and shook his head.

"The treasury quite close and I believe that I should take care of his Majesty whilst he adjusts to this sudden leap in time."

"If you need our help, please shout for us," Syaoran said and led Sakura away.

Kurogane hesitated, lingering to allow his scowl to darken. The ninja seemed torn between staying with Fai in case of an emergency and protecting the children. Reluctantly, he sauntered after the youngest of the group.

Both the wizard and the king waited for the footsteps to recede into the distance before either of them took action. Ashura growled and lunged at Fai, forcing the wizard back. Fai made no attempts to stop him. He fell through strings of cobwebs; his back slammed against the hard floor and Ashura crouched over him, clutching Fai's throat in a viper grip.

"Fai!" Ashura snarled. It was funny how someone could remain quite so beautiful even when they were damp, angry and with cobwebs in their hair. With his free hand, Ashura drew from the confines of his cloak a sparkling feather imprinted with the pattern of an ornate heart.

"Why?" the king demanded. "_You _put me to sleep! Are you trying to play with me by pretending to be on my side now? You knew that I had this so why did you lie to them? Aren't they your comrades? Your friends? What are you playing at? What have you done?"

The cobwebs in Ashura's hair stood out vividly against the black of Ashura's hair. The grip on Fai's throat tightened but Fai only smiled to see the red of hot fury and resentment blossom in Ashura's cheeks, though Fai's smile never managed to reach his eyes.

XX

_The chessboard had become a sparse, barren land. Most of the pawns gone, the castles crumbled to a side of the board, the knights lay weary and the queens stared at each other down, caught in a dead-  
lock._

_Nails moved its remaining knight in a vertical L. "All the other pieces from the queen down to the pawn can be played to an advantage. The king is just a liability," it said airily and toppled the black bishop._

_There was a long pause in which the battlefield stood silent. All pieces waited reverently for the next move. In their motionless figures, they must surely have known that the battle was coming to a close. Soon, these next moves would pronounce a winner to the war._

_"Maybe so but…" a hand hovered over its black pieces, "even if the bishops are gone, the knights dead and the castle captured, the game can continue as long as the king remains."_

_Sliding a black piece forward, it moved five squares towards the white pieces, capturing the king between another castle and a knight._

_"Checkmate."_

* * *

I think that Fai comes across as the evil one here. I don't believe that Fai or Ashura are really evil. It's never that straightforward, but I don't think that Fai was entirely innocent either. My main worry was making Ashura seem too weak but I can always blame that on being disorientated after waking up and finding his castle in such a state. Anyway, please tell me what you think of this Ashura. 


	4. Chapter IV

Yes, finally, I mamanged to complete this chapter. I had to go back and read my previous chapter to remember what was happening, it's been so long.

_

* * *

_

I capture the castle

Chapter IV

_"You play well. Another game?" The figure asked, nails toying with the defeated king._

_"No," was the curt reply, suddenly seeming bored._

_Nails swept the pieces into a small black box. "Master is a busy man. He will be with you shortly."_

_"I appreciate that."_

XX

"Well? I want answers," Ashura growled, digging his nails into Fai's throat. "You know that I have the feather so why did you send your friends away? What is your ploy?"

Fai's gaze hovered to Sakura's feather, shimmering with golden radiance in the palm of the king's hand. Even without touching it, he could feel the indescribable power it secreted.

"Ashura-ou," he breathed, "you think so low of me." He tried to smile, though it was quite difficult when someone was crushing your throat at the same time.

Ashura's grip ever tightened, squeezing the life out of his traitorous subject. Fai winced as he felt Ashura's nails draw blood. The king's face was the picture of outrage; his cheeks were coloured crimson with anger, blossoming against his pale skin.

"You want me to kill you, don't you?" he seethed. "Do you really think that I would be so kind? No, I know you, Fai, I know that you can't stand pain. I will have you suffer a Fate a thousand times worse before I allow death to claim you," his face changed. Suddenly, he was smiling, just as a snake would smile at the foolish mouse that stumbled upon its lair. Ashura's smile never reached his eyes. His lips twisted in a cruel and callous smirk.

Fai paled. "Ashura-ou, you don't seem to understand," he muttered, trying to squirm out from under him, trying desperately not to give in to his fear, trying not to do anything rash. He just needed to get away. "Ashura-ou, so much time has passed. It's all over now."

"No, it's not over yet!" Ashura cried. "It's not over as long as the king is still standing."

"I won't do it," Fai said. It was a simple statement. That was all he needed. He had fled his world just so that he would not have to do it.

"You will do as I say!" Ashura cried. Obviously, he had not lost any of his regal air over time, nor the desire to command absolute obedience. "You remember the old days, don't you?" he smirked. "Remember how the inquisitors tortured our enemies, how they raped their minds and sent hot acid through their veins?"

Fai drew a sharp breath. He remembered. He could never forget. The inquisitors had been masters at torture and mind games. He had seen them work enough times to know how effective and how agonising their methods were. This was what he had feared. When he had fled, he had feared Ashura's awakened, had feared being punished and subjected to the same kind of torture.

"You wouldn't…"

"Fai…" Ashura spoke very softly but his voice seemed to resound across the walls of the empty chamber. "The castle is still here. I am still here. I have the feather and I have you. It is not over yet."

XX

"I don't like it," Kurogane muttered, kicking at a wooden chest. The lid popped open to reveal golden coins and shimmering jewels but no matter how many chests he kicked none of them yielded the treasure they sought.

"I know that there is some sort of history between Fai-san and his king but maybe this will help them sort it out," Syaoran said as he flicked through dusty tomes and expensive scrolls.

The treasury room was impossible to miss. With the crumbling state of the castle, it had been quite a task to reach it but once they had entered the vast chamber they found it in pristine condition. Chests full of impossible riches spilt forth their bounty, lush carpets and decades worth of history books lay in an assorted jumble. There was a pile of silver ware in the corner, strange glowing stones on a wooden shelf and translucent crystals hung from the ceiling.

Kurogane took a staff and poked through the carpets, unimpressed by all the wealth around him. "Hey, manjuu, do you sense anything?"

"There's a lot of magic floating around here," Mokona waved, hopping around the shelves.

Kurogane grunted. He should have known that things would not be easy. Syaoran sat immersed in yellowed pages whilst Sakura doing her best to scale a large pile of coins. He watched her slip and stumble, clawing her way up at a feeble pace. She had determination; he would give her that.

Just as she neared the top, the coins under Sakura's feet gave way. Syaoran immediately snapped out from the pages that he had been so absorbed in to run to his princess' aid.

Sakura screamed as she fell, reaching out for whatever she could find. Her hand grabbed hold of a hanging tapestry, steadying herself for a second before it ripped from the wall and she tumbled downwards.

"Sakura-hime!" Syaoran held his arms out underneath her and she fell with a thud into his arms.

Sakura's cheeks flushed. "Th - thank you," she stuttered, awkwardly climbing free.

Syaoran blushed and coughed. The two of them looked away, feeling the intense heat in their cheeks and the awkward silence drowning them.

Kurogane coughed. He did not particularly want to be stuck in a room with two, hormone-raging teenagers, especially when the thought of Fai and that king alone irked him so. Who knew what they could be doing or plotting?

The two children jumped, startled, as if they had forgotten Kurogane's presence entirely. Sakura looked down at the tapestry she had ripped.

"I hope that the king won't mind," she murmured, holding the torn tapestry in front of her face.

From the broken weave, another slip of cloth fell out from its folds. Syaoran picked it up, drawing a sharp breath.

"This is…" he handed it to Kurogane, who took it with the resignation of someone who had better things to do and see.

Then he looked at the cloth.

XX

"I was tired, Ashura-ou," Fai had been released from his strangle hold and was now lying, propped up on his elbows. Ashura still stalked above him, prowling like a suspicious, injured animal.

"What?" he snapped.

"The reason that I sealed you away. I was tired."

Ashura fought the urge to lunge at the blond man. "What kind of reason is that?" he asked tautly. He so dearly wanted to hurt the man.

"You would not listen to me," Fai turned away, unable to bear Ashura's piercing gaze. Even now, even after so many years had passed, it felt as if the king could still see through him, right into the depths of his soul. "I wanted you to take me away," he whispered. "I waited forever for you to take me away but you were caught up in this! In what that man told you!" he gestured towards the wide expanse of the castle. "If I let things continue, it would have ruined our country!"

"Yes, and I suppose the country is at the height of prosperity now," Ashura's biting sarcasm made him wince.

"I had to stop you. You were - "

There was a loud thud. Ashura glanced towards its source, quickly concealing the feather into the folds of his robe and Fai used his momentary distraction to stand up.

Kurogane stormed into the room, his face almost murderous. Fai wondered what he could have possibly found in the treasury room. Then he realised. Then he blanched.

"What the hell!" Kurogane's voice echoed across the walls. He shook the piece of cloth in Fai's face and then towards Ashura. "What the hell is this?" he demanded, holding up the cloth for all to see.

It was a symbol; a coat of arms if that was what one liked to call it. It was a red symbol embroidered on black cloth, the same symbol Syaoran had claimed were on the soldiers that attacked Clow country, the same symbol on the sword that had killed Kurogane's mother.

Ashura glared at Kurogane's impudence and the ninja glared right back, his crimson eyes demanding answers.

Fai shifted uncomfortably. Never so longingly had he wanted to hop into Mokona's mouth and disappear.

* * *

A great deal shorter than my previous chapter. Thank you everyone for being so patient. 


	5. Chapter V

Here it is...finally. Minor spoilers. I hope the revelation isn't disappointing. Actually, it's only half of a revelation...one that Fai does his best to gloss over. I thought of revealing everything in its messed up glory but then that wouldn't be fun, would it? Well, anyway, please enjoy.

* * *

I capture the castle

Chapter Five

XX

"Well?" Kurogane shook the offensive piece of cloth. "What the hell is this?" he growled. He had to know. It could be no coincidence that the very same symbol had been in the weapons on soldiers in both his and the kid's past. Now it was here, now the symbol lay in his hands, triggering a flood of memories that he would rather forget.

"What does is look like? It is a piece of cloth." Ashura regarded the ninja coldly.

"I know that but what about the symbol on it?" Kurogane waved it in front of the king's face impatiently. "Whose symbol is it? What does it mean?" he demanded.

Forgive. He would never forgive. He could never forgive. Curse or no, he would find the person responsible for his mother's death and slice him into a thousand pieces. Anger made his blood boil, made his voice rise and his fists curl.

"Kurogane-san!" Syaoran caught up with the ninja, his princess running breathlessly behind him. "We couldn't find the feather."

Kurogane regarded the children for a moment before turning back to the king and his wizard. "Speak, dammit!" he growled. A name, a place, that was all he needed.

"Kuro-chan, you should calm down. His majesty still needs to get used to what has happened," Fai came between the two only to be pushed back by Kurogane's glare. It was unlike anything he had seen before. It was not a simple 'I'm annoyed, leave me alone' glare. It was angry and murderous.

"Why was this is in your treasury room?" he asked slowly.

"Yes, I would also like some answers if possible," Syaoran stepped forward, into the light shining through the open ceiling.

Ashura's eyes drifted to the cloth. "That is Reed's symbol," he spoke grudgingly.

Both Syaoran and Sakura's eyes widened. "Clow Reed?" Syaoran gasped incredulously.

Ashura's cold gaze drifted across the children "Fei Wong Reed," he corrected, as if they were idiots for not knowing better.

"I've never heard of the guy," Kurogane tossed the cloth to a side. It was too filthy too touch, held too many bad memories within its black and red lines. If the scars opened now he did not think that he would be able to stop them. He did not think that he could fight the rising memories that would wash over and drown him. "Where is he? Who is he? What's his connection with you?"

"One question at a time, Kuro-pun," Fai resumed his role of easing the tension in the chamber, which was currently thick enough to club a whale to death. "We're all exhausted. Let's leave it for now and come back when we've all calmed down," he suggested.

"No!" Kurogane yelled.

"Okay, I see Kuro-chi won't move until he has answers and Ashura-ou…Ashura-ou probably wants to spend some quality catch-up time with me,"Fai pulled out his extra-special emergency smile.

He could feel events slipping from his fingers. Things were going down a dangerous path, one that he would not be able to control.His best hope now was to end this quickly. Be vague, be obscure, hide the truth until you can run again.

"Fei Wong Reed is…" he faltered. "Fei Wong Reed is…a sort of sorcerer if you will"

"Is that all?"

"Patience, Kuro-pin, patience," Fai soothed. "Celes is a cold country. As you've seen from our treasury, it's rich in minerals and precious stones but not much else. People can't eat rock and the land is too cold to grow much food. Our nation is…was dependant on our neighbours for food."

"But that dependence is a weakness. We suffer greatly during war-time, when the other nations close their roads to us, or when they experience a bad harvest," Ashura spoke tersely, glowering at his wizard for using the past tense.

"It was particularly bad when Fei Wong Reed came. We were suffering from bad harvest and war and he was like a saviour. We thought that if only we had a way of growing our own crops, if only the sun would shine on our nation, things would be okay," Fai smiled, though it never reached his eyes. His blue eyes stared at something invisible, at a past that had disappeared over a hundred years ago.

_The idea of a true, blue sky. Fai, wouldn't that be great? To have a true blue sky and a gentle sun that shines just as warmly as your smile. I want to see it; I want to share that sky with you._

_A blue sky, Ashura-ou? Is that possible?_

_Of course it is. Dreams are simply a premature reality. _

_A blue sky?_

_Yes. A blue sky._

"Fei Wong Reed was from another world. We had been aware of other worlds before but have never communicated with them before.He told us that he had the means of granting our wishes but his services were not for free," Fai explained, shaking away the cobwebs of the past.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed. "What did you give him?" He took a deep breath to calm himself. Now was not the time to loose himself. If he wanted revenge, he would not be able to get it bulling through everything and anything in his way.

"Like I said, our land is rich in precious stones. We gave him a few orbs, a few magical crystals in exchange for a little warmth and that's all. Nothing suspicious here, Kuro-chin, just a clean deal between two sides."

"And that was it?" Kurogane asked dubiously.

There was a flicker of hesitation, expertly masked by a smile. "That was it," Fai nodded. "In order for constant warmth, we constantly gave him what we mined, which damaged our economy somewhat but at least we had something to eat during tough times."

Kurogane stared at him sceptically. It was obvious that the ninja trusted walking on the air more than he trusted the wizard's story.

"It seems I remember things better than you do, Fai," Ashura smiled coldly, "you forgot about our s_ervices_."

"Ah, I must be getting old," Fai waved a dismissive hand through the cold air, "but if I talked about _that _it would lead into all sorts of smaller stories and explanations. It's getting late. Let's leave that one for another time, hmm?" he suggested, half amused, half scared and hoping that the former was the only side the others could see.

"What is it?" Kurogane remained contended with Ashura.

"We should go. Kaede and the others will be suspicious if we don't return soon," Fai insisted but as he spoke to his companions, his eyes locked with his king's.

Ashura met Fai's gaze head on. Something was exchanged. A thought, a single wish. Ashura smiled. He was in control now.

"You're right. Let's leave it for another day," he said and turned towards the further recesses of the castle.

XX

"Ah, you're back! We've managed to get you separate rooms!" Kaede greeted them as they returned to the tavern. The snow was falling softly as the light was beginning to wane. Sheushered them inside where the warmth hit their faces and the candles waved friendly hands in greeting.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Syaoran bowed politely as the townsfolk brought them all a hot meal.

Kaede smiled and placed her head in her hands. Syaoran fidgeted and fiddled with his spoon under her careful observation, causing her smile to widen. "So where have you been? No one's seen any of you all day," she asked.

"We were looking around," Syaoran lied and they left it at that, moving on to other areas of conversation such as the epidemic and the best recipe for stuffed dingo nuts.

After a quick meal, Fai quickly excused himself, claiming that the day's excitement had gotten to him and hurried off to his room. As Kaede had said, they had got them separate rooms but her definition of separate still meant sharing with another person and, as always, he and Kurogane had been lumped together.

The room was no different from the last. It was still as cold and empty save for the blankets and duvets laid on the floor to fight of the night's chill. A single window let in what was the last of the day's dying light onto a cold floor every bit as frozen as the snow.

Fai rolled out his blankets, preparing his bed for the night as he heard the soft footsteps of his roommate approach.

"So, do you want to tell me the truth?"

"I did, Kuro-chi," Fai replied.

"The whole truth," Kurogane pinned him with crimson eyes that seemed to see everything. Fai shifted uncomfortably and returned his attention to the bedrolls. "It will come out eventually so you might as well tell me now," Kurogane said softly, dangerously, like a beast giving a warning growl before it leapt.

Fai's eyes darted about the room, looking everywhere except at the man demanding answers. Why was it that he seemed to be hounded by big, scary men with equally big, scary weapons/powers who wanted things explained to them? Fai stretched and faked a yawn. "I'm sure that Ashura-ou will oblige you tomorrow," he feigned fatigue.

"You like running away, don't you?" Kurogane stared at him accusingly. "Whenever things get a little tough, you run away and hide."

Fai smiled. "I'm not running now," he said softly, hoping that his pensiveness would annoy his companion enough to let him drop the subject.

However, Kurogane was not going to let him off so lightly. "You are," he insisted, pinning him down with unnerving Kurogane astuteness. "You've been trying desperately to run away ever since we got here."

Fai turned to the window, glancing outside where the children were still playing. Vaguely, he wondered how anyone could laugh and play in such a cold, desolate place. The children ran after each other, yelling things muffled by the glass between them. In the growing darkness, their running forms flitted like ghosts from another time, leaving marks of the past on freshly fallen snow.

"Capture the castle," he murmured, staring at the playful children.

Kurogane blinked. "What?"

"It was a game," Fai smiled, turning back to his disgruntle companion.

"I don't care about some stupid game," Kurogane grunted, irritated that he had allowed the wizard an opening by which to escape from their current topic of conversation.

"Ah, but don't you want to know about my stunning childhood?" Fai teased, going into melodramatic mode.

"Are you willing to tell me?" Kurogane countered.

For a moment Fai's smile almost disappeared. For a moment, caught by surprise, his face lay tragically unguarded but that moment passed too quickly for anything to have been read and soon the protective smile was back in place.

"You have two teams," despite wearing his 'everything's made of rainbows' smile, his voice was soft and oddly strained. "On both sides there is a person who is dubbed the 'castle.' You split your own team into two: those who will defend your 'castle' and those who will try and capture the other team's 'castle.' When you catch the other team's castle you have to shout 'Goal!' to win," he explained. "It was a rough game. The children always ended up with scrapes and cuts and sometimes even broken bones. I suppose that when you're caught up in something it's hard to stop."

"So?"

Fai shrugged. "I feel a lot like the 'castle' right now, except there's no one on my side to protect me."

There was no way Kurogane could have disguised the wordless grunt of disgust that so distastefully parted from his lips. Even though he believed that he had a considerable amount of restraint, he had always been a very forthright person, particularly when he was pissed off.

Right now, he was particularly annoyed.

No, he was more than annoyed. Peeved maybe. Perhaps a coupling of the two, perhaps a combination of every kind of irritation there was added to the fact that he was tired and had already been pissed off for most of the day.

Kurogane's fist slammed against the floor besides him. It was either the floor or someone's face. Unfortunately for the floor, it was today's hapless victim.

"Can't you say anything that isn't pointless crap?" Kurogane hit the floor with his fist again. "You always try to avoid what you don't like."

Kurogane glared openly at the wizard. Truth be told, he did not dislike the blond, mostly he was simply thrown off by the wizard's openness to everything, but at the same time he felt as if he was being constantly presented with half of a whole.

Good old smiles and sunshine Fai, he never got angry because he was simply Fai. He would never cry or hate or kill anyone because that would be a very un-Fai thing to do. That was the image the wizard wanted his companions to believe, what he probably desperately wanted to believe too. Quite frankly, not only did it go against Kurogane's own way of living but also it was downright insulting to his intelligence that the blond could possibly hope of fooling him.

"Kuro-chi?" Fai turned, surprised and feeling the utmost sympathy for the floorboards.

"Do you want me to save you, is that it?" Kurogane remained glaring across the span of their small, cold room.

"Of course not, I - "

"The stop playing the damsel in distress!" Kurogane cut across Fai's words with his own harsh tone. He wanted it to end. The lies and the deceit, the manipulating and the running, if not he thought that he would go crazy watching the wizard run in circles of the past with no outlet to the future. "Stop being such a coward. You're not that weak."

Fai felt too stunned to say anything. Once again, just like in Shurano, just as it had been in Piffle, Kurogane had displayed his unnerving perception and his ability to completely dominate the conversation.

The ninja turned away, wrapping himself in his blankets, ready for sleep. Fai supposed that he had been lucky today. Kurogane had let the questions about Fei Wong Reed and his past drop but there was no halting tomorrow. Tomorrow everything would be laid bare. Like an ugly, open wound, Ashura was about to pour salt onto Fai's injuries.

He did not know how long he stood, silently thinking. What could he do? What was there to do? He had screwed things up a long time ago and now everything had become impossibly tangled. Perhaps there was only one thing that he could do.

Sighing, he silently drifted out of the room, casting a fleeting glance at the ninja he hoped was fast asleep.

He did not want to do this. He had hoped to avoid this but things had once again spiralled out of his control, just as they had then, before he had run. He had hoped to have never returned, to never have to face what he left behind. Kurogane was right. He did run whenever he could. He ran from the people he feared and loved alike, from the words he did not want to hear, from everything and anything that could possibly hurt him.

Run and run and run. Run as fast as the wind. Don't stop. Never stop.

Fai softly padded down the empty hallway, moving, almost floating, quietly, unseen. It seemed every footstep took an eternity and the hallway stretched out before him into eternity.

Light seeped under the door of Sakura's room. Through the wood, he could hear hushed voices, warm and thick with oncoming sleep. He smiled. It was regrettable that he would have to interrupt that moment.

Run and run and run. Run as fast as the wind, never stopping, never looking back.

Lifting his fist to the hard wood, he rapped his knuckles against the door.

The voices ceased all together and then the door opened. Fai smiled at a weary looking Syaoran, gracing the young boy with a typical, cheery grin.

Run and run and run, because if you ever stop, if you ever stop running, all the doubts and fear you kept pent up inside will catch up to you. They will consume you. You will drown.

"Sorry to bother you," he slapped his hands together in an act of asking for forgiveness. "Syaoran-kun, can I have a minute, please?"

* * *

Ah, melodrama. Of course, we all know that Fai's only been telling half the story about Fei Wong Reed. Let's see you wriggle your way out of this one, Fai! 


	6. Chapter VI

Sorry for the very long wait! Chapter six is up now and it's a long chapter.

* * *

I capture the castle

Chapter VI

XX

The men were arguing, dealing with their 'adult matters' in loud, angry voices and rough gestures. Occasionally, one of them would pull out a large scroll from the cabinet, unroll it and point at something indistinct before tossing it aside. The other would then respond with another scroll and an even louder voice.

He watched the two argue relentlessly. The first man, taller than the second, with long, wavy raven locks shook his head as the smaller man in ice blue robes stabbed his finger at the parchment. Tired by their argument, he stood up and walked out of the audience chamber. Neither of the adults noticed his absence.

The maids stopped and bowed as he passed but he paid them no more attention than the adults had done to him. Whenever the two of them fought, the entire castle felt the weight of the tension and the hallways were filled with flitting servants afraid to make more than a squeak.

He turned away in disgust. The closeted walls of the castle were suffocating him, the dark stones obscured his thought, he was angry and the timid behaviour of the servants only irked him even more.

Making his way outside, the bitter air bit him with frosty fangs. He recoiled against the sudden transition from the warm interior of the castle to the chilly open space.

The world was painted in white. The snow below and the sky above were the same colourless shade and the houses spiralling below his feet were strokes of a pen against paper. He gazed below him at the commoners living on the ground, close to the earth and snow. Above them, the castle dominated the town with its shadow and the weaving staircases ran spider webs across the sky.

He kicked a loose rock from the steps and watched it plummet to the ground. They were indeed high above the ground, so high the bids did not reach his ears and the sounds of life from the town below could not quite be heard.

There was one voice though, a voice humming tunelessly. He turned in search of its source and found a boy sitting on the staircase across from him, swinging his legs over the side.

"You're Ashura-ouji, aren't you?" the boy twirled a flower between his delicate fingers

Ashura gazed at the boy without reply. The child seemed to be his age, though with magic running through one's veins a person's looks were always deceptive. The boy smiled at him with a friendly readiness that caught Ashura's full attention.

"I'm currently in training. Fai D Flowright but you can just call me Fai," the blond boy introduced himself, meeting Ashura's gaze with a pair of startling blue eyes.

Ashura shifted uncomfortably, unused to being addressed with such unabashed openness "Pleasure," he grunted then fine-tunes his attention to the object in the boy's hands "Where did you get that flower from?"

"Do you like it?" Fai glanced at the fragile petals as if only just realising what it was. "Ashura-ouji can have it if he wants, there are plenty more around," he thrust it across the gap of air between their two staircases.

Ashura accepted it with the tentativeness of one handling an unstable explosive. "Where did you get it?" He asked, askance.

Fai giggled, bringing a hand to his mouth to hide his smile. "It's a secret…but if Ashura-ouji want to know then I guess that I have to tell you."

He cupped a handful of snow in his palms. Whispering sweet nothings to the stained snow, it melted in his pale hand, reshaping itself into a blue rose.

"Pretty isn't it?" he offered the second flower to his prince.

Ashura now stared openly at this boy, this trainee wizard. Never before had he been talked to in such a manner. Fai slipped between formal and informal language as if politeness was an afterthought; his eyes met his unchangingly but without fear. Blond hair and blue eyes was not uncommon colouring but Fai's hair seemed just a little paler than hay, more like the snow upon the first of the day's light, and his eyes just a little bluer, a little richer than topaz.

Then Ashura realised.

"Wait! You can't turn snow into flowers!"

It was a rule. Objects were made up of elements and an equal amount of those elements were needed to change one thing into another. Snow was ice and flowers were earth. Where was the balance? Where did the earth element needed to make the flower come from?

"But I just did. I'm good at this sort of thing…transformation," Fai began idly plucking petals, tossing them to the wind where, somewhere below, a young peasant girl would find each sapphire petal.

"Then," Ashura shifted as close as possible, "then could you make food? Is it possible to make food out of rocks and snow?"

For the first time, Fai's smile faded. "I could," he nodded, "but there would be no point."

"What are you talking about? Ceres is always short of food!"

"I could turn it into food and it would look like food, probably taste like food too, it'd fill you up and make you content but there would be no point in eating it," the wizard-in-training shook his head. "There would be none of the nutrients, none of the goodness in real food. It would be like eating flavoured air."

Ashura slumped back, releasing the breath he did not know he had been holding. Just as he thought that he had found the answer, it had been cruelly dashed before his eyes. Of course, he told himself bitterly; if it were that simple, the court magicians would have done so by now.

"My father was arguing with the Grand wizard. It's always about food and the harvest," he muttered.

"Then, when you become king, all you have to do is make sure that the people have enough food. You'll be a good king!" Fai grinned.

Ashura almost jumped, taken aback by the boy's optimism and zeal. "Stop!" he could not fight the blush, "you'll jinx it!"

"It's true!" Fai insisted. He was edging so close that Ashura was afraid the boy would forget the open space between their staircases and fall to the earth. "I want Ashura-ouji to be the best king in the world!"

XX

"Idiot," Ashura breathed. "I told you that you would jinx it."

He slammed his fist against a crumbling pillar, wishing he were capable of turning back the time. Everything was so different and he had no idea how to fix things. He wanted his kingdom back, he wanted the castle back in its full glory; he wanted his people back and the life that he knew. Everything was gone now and it was that man's entire fault.

He made his way back to the pool where he had awoken. There was nothing left now. Only the now crumbling castle and the man whom had betrayed him were all that was left.

The man that had betrayed him stood on the other side of the pool's water, out of the light that filtered from the holes in the ceiling as if afraid to be touched by the light. The man that had betrayed him, with hair just a little paler than hay and eyes just a little richer than topaz, stood wearing a sad smile.

"Ashura-ou?"

Ashura smiled. There he was - the man that was responsible for everything.

XX

"The feather?" Syaoran's eyes widened. Even in the darkness Fai could see the boy's face grow light with happiness of locating it then darken at the prospect of fighting Ashura.

Syaoran glanced at him as if to ask 'is it okay?' Would Fai be okay? In truth, the mage had no idea if he would ever be okay but he smiled nevertheless.

"So…why did you wait to tell us this?" a sudden looming presence hovered over his shoulder.

"Kuro-tan!" Fai almost jumped but he managed to gather himself in time to mask his shock with a defensive smile. "Weren't you sleeping?" he asked weakly.

Kurogane ran an irritated hand through his dark hair. "I was until I heard you get up and leave. So, why did you wait to tell us about such an important thing?"

Fai turned away. "I don't want to betray Ashura-ou again. I thought, when he saw the current situation, he would give it up."

"You already sealed him away for a hundred years, it's pretty damn late to beg for forgiveness now, don't you think?" Kurogane asked, completely deadpan and Fai tried to hide the hurt by turning his back on the taller man.

"With the feather, Ashura-ou's power will have increased. He has not used it yet because there was no need but if we attack him straight on, he won't hesitate to use it."

"Then…" Syaoran began but there was no need to continue. All three of them knew what had to be done.

Fai stepped back, letting the shadows claim most of his face whilst the puppy duo discussed the best course of action.

This was for the best, he told himself. This was for the best, just as sealing Ashura away had been 'for the best.'

XX

Now the mage steadied his resolve. This was the only way, he told himself. No time for regrets. This was the only way. Breaking out his trademark fake smile, his slowly approached his volatile king.

"It's my fault," he spoke in a near whisper. "It's because I wished for you to become the best king in the world. It's because you met me. If I had just let you be…"

Fai shook his head, holding out his hand as if asking for Ashura to take it, though that would have been like asking for his hand to be cut off and there was a pool of clear water separating the two.

"Please give me the feather."

"Excuse me?" Ashura's face contorted with amusement and contempt.

"The feather, it belongs to Sakura-chan," Fai reiterated. For once there was no attempt to hide behind his smile. His face was stony.

"I need this feather," Ashura growled, holding his cloak closer to his body.

Fai looked particularly strained; his smile came back to him, a small, wistful smile. "Ashura-ou, is there any point in - "

"Of course there is!" Ashura snapped with sudden vehemence. After all this time, Fai was still going against him, still protesting against his dream. He glanced around the room, remembering the point that they had stopped at the night before. "Where are your comrades? Don't they want to hear our lovely story?" he asked.

Something flickered across the wizard's face. It blossomed across his face for less than a second before dying just as quickly yet Ashura saw it. What was it? He had seen that expression somewhere before.

"Ashura-ou," Fai began to walk towards him.

Ashura drew back. That was where he had seen it! That same look, the same pathetic smile, those same eyes of impossible blue, crystallised regret. Fai wore that same expression just before betraying him.

It would happen again. Again and again, his never-ending betrayal reflected in the eternity his eyes.

_"I want Ashura-ouji to be the best king in the world!"_

"I'm sorry, Ashura-ou, you left me no choice."

XX

Ashura spun around, raising his hand before him. The warm fire of magic flowing through his veins began to race, rushing to his call as the sword bore down on him. The blade collided with his shield, throwing sparks into the air. The sudden force of the two opposing forces blasted them back in a burst of smoke.

From the fading tendrils, Ashura rose, his eyes blazing with the heat of anger and hatred. Again, he had been betrayed again.

Across the chamber, the boy - Ashura had no clue of his name - approached him slowly, the sword that had almost struck him lying in his gloved hand.

"Please, if you have Sakura-hime's feather, please return it!" he cried. Though he asked politely, his eyes betrayed him, they told the king how desperate the boy was, how determined he was to retrieve the feather and yet, when he had been attacked, Ashura felt no murderous intent in the boy's swing.

It was funny. It was almost too funny. So Fai had somehow managed to get the boy into the castle unnoticed and set up such a small, pathetic trap before he arrived. He laughed. It was just too funny; of course he would laugh. He would laugh when he beat the boy too and he would laugh when he punished his faithless wizard.

"Please, just hand over the feather!" the boy tried again.

Ashura refused to dignify such an idiotic request with an answer. If the boy wanted the feather, he was welcome to try and take it. He touched a slab of fallen ceiling and it transformed into a long, if crude staff in his hands.

A blast of magic left Ashura's staff. The boy met it with the Hein's fiery blade, slicing it in two as he charged. Ashura rose his staff as the boy's sword slashed at his chest. The boy was talented, he would admit, but inexperienced. Ashura waited to an opening to appear before he pushed out with another wave of magic. Raising his staff, he went for the opening he saw, already seeing the blood that he would shed.

His staff met the cold steel of another sword. He leapt away from the wipe that would surely have decapitated him, leaving him room to calculate this knew aggressor.

The man was taller and heavier than the boy was; his stance spoke of years of experience. Kurogane, he thought he once heard the boy call the man.

"This seriously pisses me off!" the ninja growled, raising his sword.

Ashura bore into him, pushing Kurogane backwards. They shot through several stone walls, all the while exchanging furious blows.

Fai and the boy ran after them, following the trail of destruction left by the two battling men.

They continued to spar in the darkness of another chamber. Only the illuminating beam of Ashura's magic cast any light upon the room. Steel echoed against the stones, screeching as Kurogane's sword collided with Ashura's staff.

The blade of Hein burst into flames and Syaoran prepared himself to aid Kurogane when the chamber began to shake. It rumbled and growled, loosening flecks of stone from the cavernous ceiling.

Everyone stopped and listened.

Ashura-ou leapt away from the battle to spark of ball of blue flames. It hovered above his palm before multiplying into several smaller flames, which moved to surround the perimeter of the chamber.

The blue light glowed with eerie iridescence and a large pair of sightless eyes was reflected in their glow.

XX

"Here you go," Kaede slid a bowl of hot soup towards Sakura. "Don't trouble yourself with our worries, I'm sure that things will return to normal soon."

Sakura graciously accepted the offering of steaming, unidentifiable lumps of brown drifting in a pea green sea. "How…how long has this epidemic lasted?"

Kaede pushed her glasses to the bridge of her nose. Smiling when there was absolutely nothing to smile about seemed to be a habit given to all those that were born in Ceres.

"A long time," she replied, "but it's fine, I - "

"Kaede-san!" Sakura caught her as she fell. The young woman coughed and swayed in her arms.

"I'm okay, just a little tired"

"You should rest!" she insisted.

"The castle," Kaede straightened herself, using the back of a chair as a cane. "Do you see why it is cursed? The castle is dark with sin and blood. Even the stones are moaning."

Sakura glanced at the crumbling castle. When she had first seen it, it looked beautiful, its spiky wing-  
like projections glittering with immortal brilliance. In the light of the day, it only loomed ominously over them, casting a long shadow over the town. The darkness of the stones were impossible to tell but instead of moaning they seemed to be calling, calling to her in a tiny, curious voice.

"Sakura-chan?" Kaede cast her a quizzical glance.

"I hear a voice," she murmured, "calling me."

Without knowing why, her legs suddenly began to move, her arms threw the door open and she flew across the freshly fallen snow. She felt Mokona grab a hold of her hood but she did not stop, even whilst Kaede called after her she kept running. It was calling to her.

XX

"Kuro-chan, stop!" Fai pleaded but the ninja was beyond all reasoning.

"What is it?" Syaoran breathed.

"Ashura-ou, why is this thing here?" Fai stabbed his finger at the creature whilst he tried to deter the ninja's sudden, frenzied attacks.

Ashura ran a tired hand through his raven hair. " I put it to sleep, saving it for an emergency, but it seems it has now awakened," he shrugged, as if the giant demon was a common, castle pet.

"Th - this thing!" Kurogane cried as he unleashed an assault of furious attacks upon the creature's body. His heart was pounding. Had it been beating quite as fast back then? He had fought this kind of creature before, this creature that looked exactly the same.

"Kurogane-san!" Syaoran cried as the ninja jumped away from its snapping mouth only to return to his barrage of attacks.

"Kurogane!" Fai had given up the inane nicknames, his expression panicked.

"This thing!" he roared.

Why did it have to look the same? It was almost identical. If only it had different fangs, if only its hide was a different colour, then he would not have to feel so disgusted, then he would not have to feel such necessity to kill it. If only it did not look like that demon that held his father's sword in its mouth along with...along with…

The creature opened its mouth, amassing a terrible ball of energy. It formed quickly in its mouth, too quickly to move. Kurogane only twisted in time to see it leaving the creature, heading straight towards him.

He felt something collide with his body, something smaller than him. A white blur? It pushed him aside, free of the deathly blast.

It was not until he heard Syaoran's panicked cry of "Fai-san!" that he managed to comprehend the entirety of what had happened.

XX

Sakura reached the chamber where Fai's king had first awakened. It seemed more ruined than before; the pillars were slashed and there were traces of scorch marks on the stone floor.

Warily, she approached the pool, staring at her own reflection in the crystal waters. Mokona remained oddly silent as she watched her underwater twin stare at her with equally wide, green eyes.

"The voice…" she murmured.

"Mokona doesn't sense anything," the manjuu whispered.

Sakura nodded and walked around the pool. She had heard something, she was sure of it. A ghost, perhaps. Perhaps it was a spirit of a wizard with earthly attachments to the castle. Something had called her to the ruined chamber.

"Chi?"

There it was again. A gentle, innocent voice, tentatively calling to her like a child that wanted her mother's attention.

Sakura scanned the chamber. The crumbling remnants of the ceiling were scattered haphazardly across the floor, the pool glittered under the light and the walls were scarred with cracks and crevices. She looked down at the dusty floor, also cracked and scarred. In the corner, the strange net-like thing that had been removed from over the water lay in a sorry heap.

She moved towards it almost instinctively. It drew her towards it as helpless as a moth before a flame.

"Were you the one calling me?"

"Chi," the voice came again, only closer and tinted with happiness. "Chi can't move so Chi needs a favour."

Crouching besides the thing, Sakura ran her hand across the hard ridges. "I'm sorry, I don't know how to turn you back," she apologised; though she was unsure of how she knew that the thing had another form.

"That's okay. Chi will ask for a favour."

* * *

Oops, it seems I have entered theterritory of the strange and unbelievable. I hope that this chapter was worth the long wait. Unfortunately, there may be another long wait before the next. Sorry.


	7. Chapter VII

Yay, I finally got this chapter up! Hopefully, the next one will be along soon.

* * *

I capture the castle

Chapter VII

XX

Again, it had happened again. Even after he told himself that he would become stronger, even after he had turned away from other people, even after choosing loneliness over the warmth of company, it had happened again.

The sudden blast from the look-alike demon tore up the floor in a mushroom cloud of dust and rushing wind. Kurogane stepped back; forced to shield his eyes from the rising dirt.

Just like his mother. Just like his father. It had happened again. Someone had gotten hurt trying to protect him. Again.

The wind from the blast tore at him, threatening to rip him apart if he did not retreat. He could hear the kid crying, "Fai-san! Fai-san!"

XX

"W-what is this?" Sakura tentatively touched the cold metal. It was smooth and shiny and looked brand new, without a speck of rust or dirt or even a thread of a spider's web on its hundred-year-old form.

"A Solar Magnet," Chi replied, moving as fast as she could in her net-like form to Sakura's side.

Sakura walked around the large construction, trying to grasp just how it worked whilst Mokona hopped from beam to beam. The Solar Magnet was an impossible weave of ice-like metal and translucent blue crystals. She tried to the trace the bending beams that curved around each other but got lost somewhere amongst the dozen others. To her, this 'contraption' was no more than a bizarre statue and yet, somehow, she could feel the low hum of power surrounding it.

"Fai told Chi," the net-like thing paused, recalling just what Fai had told her, "he told Chi that it was created with the feather."

"My feather?"

"Fai told Chi that it will bring the sun's blessing to Celes, that it will help the people, that it would stop them suffering."

Sakura ran her fingertips along the metal construction. "That sounds wonderful, just like something Fai-san would think of," she breathed.

"This was Ashura-ou's idea," Chi said and Sakura turned her shock gaze towards her. Ashura-ou, the king that seemed to hate Fai so much, had thought of such a kind and benevolent idea. Sakura wondered what had happened between the two, something big, something unforgivable.

Inside the darkness of the circular chamber, the lines of a magic circle, dark and brooding, lay dormant beneath her feet. Sakura pushed back a stray strand of hair and knelt down to trace the dark lines.

"The sun will bring a blue sky," Chi murmured, as if suddenly remembering something important.

"I see," Sakura's fingers ran across the shallow carvings. She had no idea why she understood the situation so completely, she just knew. This dark chamber was full of magic, dark, oppressive magic that seemed to smother her, drown her in its shadow. "So this is what is causing the epidemic," she murmured, her words slipping from her mouth before she could even comprehend what she was saying. "The Solar Magnet has been draining the land. Over a hundred years have passed and now the land cannot cope any more. Now the people are beginning to feel the illness of the land."

Chi remained silent, neither confirming nor denying Sakura's conjecture. Perhaps she did not know.

Sakura turned towards the net-like creature. "What do you want me to do, Chi?" she asked. The chamber seemed darker by the minute.

"Chi would like you to destroy it."

XX

The cloud of dust parted and then settled onto the floor. The blue flames roared brighter. In their cold glow, Fai was on the ground behind a translucent shield of shifting colours and Ashura stood in front of him, between the wizard and the now lifeless demon.

Syaoran stared incredulously from the dead creature, to the king, to his wizard. When did Ashura-ou move? He had not seen anything past the demon's sudden attack. No, more importantly, _why_ had Ashura-ou moved?

"Fai-san!" he rushed towards the kneeling wizard. "Fai-san, are you alright?"

Fai stumbled to his feet, swaying dangerously. He hesitated; even he was unsure if he really was okay. "I'm fine," he smiled after a moment to check that he was 'all there.'

Together, they both glanced inquisitively at the king that had protected Fai.

The shield vanished. The flames darkened.

"Do not take this the wrong way. It would just be an inconvenience if you were to die right now," Ashura spoke solemnly before a sudden smile contorted his features. "I am surprised though, you could have handled this thing easily. You were the one who made it after all."

Fai's eyes widened.

"Ma - " Syaoran began.

"Made it?" Kurogane finished for him, though he looked less shocked than the boy did and more murderous.

Fai stood still. Ashura-ou had told them, he had revealed the last part of their deal with Fei Wong Reed.

Ashura-ou wore a thin smile. "I know that we were meant to give all the demons we created to Fei Wong Reed, but your behemoth was so impressive that I just had to make a copy."

"You…gave him demons?" Kurogane stuttered. His anger and outrage blocking the smooth path from his throat to his mouth.

"That was the second part of our deal," Ashura-ou said casually, though he seemed fully aware of the implications of his story, "to create blueprints of demons that could easily be replicated by Fei Wong Reed."

Kurogane clenched his teeth together. "Do you have any idea what he did with the designs for those demons you created?" he growled.

"It was none of our business, but I can guess," Ashura-ou flicked a strand of hair from his face, his lovely face; beautifully carved with crushed hopes and betrayal.

"Kuro - " Fai whispered.

"I suppose that you could have guessed to," Kurogane turned his smouldering expression towards the mage. His eyes were bright with the intensity of anger and hurt but his voice remained low-key and dangerous. "I suppose that you knew what he was going to use those creatures for," he whispered.

Fai opened his mouth to speak but, for the first time in his life, the words would not come to him. His words had left him, betrayed him, leaving him helpless and hurt.

"Fai, it seems that you are cornered," Ashura-ou smirked and held out a condescending hand towards the wizard. "Come, let's complete what we set out to do."

With gritted teeth and eyes dancing in hurt, Fai swatted the hand away. "What _you_ set out to do!" he yelled. "I didn't want to be a part of this! I knew that nothing good would come of it but I was loyal to you and you were so enamoured with the idea of a true blue sky!"

Ashura-ou's mood dangerously darkened. "If you were loyal to me, would you have sent me to sleep? If you were loyal, would you have ran?"

The ninja's fists curled. How? Fai was stupid and wise beyond his years, he was immature and strangely serious, he was always happy and always lonely. Fai was…he was…

Fai was important. Just as the kid and the princess and even that stupid pork bun was important to him, Fai was too and yet the wizard was the one…the one who had created it. He could not believe that he had been so worried over the wizard's saftey just moments ago.

_You're hopeless, Kurogane! No matter how much you try to be alone, you need people. You need people to protect._

Was this how Ashura-ou felt? Did he feel this feeling of betrayal? This consuming anger and raging hate and, above all, the drowning hurt. He had not even been aware that he was capable of feeling such hurt. Why? He was physically fine so why did he feel so much pain?

"Kuro - " Fai's eyes searched painfully for the ninja. If his eyes could convey anything, it was his absolute desperation. "Let's stop this," he pleaded the silent ninja, "let's stop this now."

"Why? So that you can run away again?" Kurogane snapped. "I always knew that you were a coward but never one so selfish and pathetic!"

"Well, I suppose that there's a first for everything," Fai murmured, his voice lacking all humour.

"The feather!" Syaoran cried, reminding everyone of the most important matter at hand "Please, I don't know what happened in the past or what you plan to do now, but please return Sakura-hime's feather to me!"

Ashura-ou regarded the boy with a cold stare. "Boy, do you know what it feels like to swim against the tide? To be so caught up in something that it is all you can do to keep from drowning?" he spoke in a near whisper, almost inaudible but for the absolute silence that fell upon the men. "I will not, cannot stop, not here. It is unfortunate, but I need this feather just as much as you do."

Syaoran's fists clenched, his eyes reflected the fire of his determination. "I will ask you one more time, please give me the feather!"

"I am sorry, boy," Ashura-ou turned and retreated from the chamber at an extraordinary speed.

"Ashura-ou!" Fai made to run after his king but a sudden voice halted him in his tracks. It was light and feminine and definitely did not come from within the crumbling darkness.

"Chi?" He murmured. It was Chi's voice he had heard, right? No one else could communicate with him in that way.

"Fai-san?" Syaoran turned to the mage questioningly.

Fai spun around so suddenly the boy took an involuntary jump back. "Syaoran-kun, quick! Sakura-chan is - "

XX

_As he entered the chamber, most of the wizards were already on their way out. They bowed to him before passing. Ashura gave them a brief nod as he entered._

_His wizards in their white robes and swirling ice blue coats hurried across the spacious chamber. Ashura passed these without a moment's glance as his footsteps echoed across a floor of translucent ice._

_He searched the crystal pillars and marble walls, scanning each figure as the wizards passed him. Everything was so blue and white that they were almost completely camouflaged against the backdrop of the chamber._

_Ashura made a mental note to change the uniform of his wizards._

_"Ah!" he heard a familiar voice hailing him and turned his gaze towards the source of the voice. "Ashura-ou!" Fai waved him over._

_Ashura smiled at the energetic blond. How someone could have so much energy after the wizard's council was beyond him but he graced the young man with his presence anyway._

_"Ashura-ou," Fai was practically bouncing with energy, "what have you been up to?"_

_"The usual," he shrugged._

_Fai's ceased all bubbly bouncing to narrow his eyes at the king accusingly. "You've been meeting him again, this Fei Wong Reed person, haven't you?"_

_"I know that you don't like him but think about this objectively, this deal will benefit Celes."_

_Ashura tugged at his cloak. He should have known that the young man would see through him. The blond was frighteningly astute a times, though why he, the king, should feel any kind of guilt was beyond him, what he did was his own choice after all._

_Fai pouted, placing both hands firmly upon his hips. "If it was just for the benefit of Celes then it wouldn't be a problem but I feel as if there's another reason for your involvement with him," he said in a manner that reminded Ashura of a mother hen clucking angrily at one of its chicks._

_"A blue sky," Ashura murmured so softly that Fai could only just catch his words._

_"What?" he laughed. "A blue sky? Isn't that weird?"_

_"I think that it would be beautiful," the king shook his head, turning the full force of his gaze towards his loyal subject, at the wizard's crystalline eyes. "Imagine it," he breathed, "a blanket of heaven above you as blue as your eyes."_

_To Ashura's affected sighs, Fai simply laughed again, his laughter pealing across the vastness of the chamber. "I never knew that you were such a dreamer, Ashura-ou, how romantic!" he giggled as hints of pink tinged the king's cheeks._

_Ashura straightened and coughed away his embarrassment. "In a few years it will no longer be a dream. Soon, Celes will be a land cradled by the earth, kissed with the warmth of the sun, and blessed with a true blue sky."_

XX

Destroy the Solar Magnet, Sakura stretched her neck upwards to the peak of the device, how could she destroy something so large and strong? Chi seemed to think that bringing down a giant construction was easy but all that she had were her bare hands.

"How…" she began, wondering if she was expected to tear it down with tooth and nail when she heard the frantic pace of footsteps racing towards her.

"Sakura!" Mokona cried and she spun around just as something came hurtling into the chamber.

At first, he seemed as shocked to see her as she was of him, but that surprise dissipated in an instant and was replaced by a blank look.

Sakura backed away, further and further away from the king's emotionless expression. Her back hit the wall and still her stared at her with unreadable, impassive eyes.

"I will never let anyone take that dream away from me!" he snarled.

Chi's net-like form moved towards the king. "Ashura-ou!" Sakura could hear her say.

The king flung his hand towards the net, without touching it, and flung it outside the chamber, beyond its doors.

"Chi!" Sakura tried to run towards her. Perhaps she was in a panic. Her feet seemed to be moving much faster than she thought possible. No, it was magic. The king's magic gathered her up like a baby and flung her outside. She screamed at she skidded across the floor, right into Syaoran's arms.

"Sakura-hime!" he cried, drawing his sword in case the king decided to follow them out and attack.

However, instead of swooping upon them, the king held his hand again and the double doors to the chamber rumbled shut. A dark red circle shimmered upon the doors, suddenly appearing as deeply and passionately as blood upon snow - a sealing circle.

Kurogane cursed and mumbled something under his breath whilst Fai simply seemed resigned to whatever hitsuzen was going to throw at them next but Sakura's eyes were for the boy whose arms were holding her so protectively and the flaming sword by his side.

Perhaps it was only the reflection of Hein's flames but there was an intensity Sakura had rarely seen burning in his eyes.

* * *

Just a few more chapters left, please bear with me. It may seem crazy nowbut I plan to tie up most of the loose ends by the next chapter. Thank you very much for reading! 


	8. Chapter VIII

I'm back again with a very long chapter. Again, slight spoilers for the chapters around LeCourt.

* * *

I capture the castle

chapter VIII

XX

The door was heavily shut, a dark red symbol flaring over the doors to the entrance. Beyond the door leading to the chamber where Ashura had sealed himself within, and the solar magnet; one could not forget that queer contraption, that construction of hope and misery.

They stood outside, powerless to enter, unsure of whether to approach the dangerous markings upon the door or not.

"I'm alright," Sakura assured her worried protector as he helped her stumble to her feet. To her side, Chi gathered herself up, remaining silent before the double doors and the dark red design burning upon it.

Fai tentatively inspected the large doors, scrutinising the deep red marks suddenly emblazoned upon it, brushing his fingertips ever so lightly against them lest they explode upon heavy impact. "It's sealed close," he murmured and made a face at this particularly perplexing puzzle.

Syaoran glanced at the sealed door, as if he could burn his way through with the heat of his eyes. "I have to get that feather!"

"I know," the wizard turned his back on the shut doors, smiling, "but for know, let's stop and review our situation."

Syaoran's fists clenched, his eyes burning into the door as he slowly nodded.

Fai smiled and felt Kurogane's scrutinising glare sear his back.

XX

The pool remained filled with crystal clear water since the day Ashura awoke from his slumber, the light from above made the surface glisten eerily. Around the circle of light, everything was painted in shadows - muted greys and dull dun-coloured walls washed in dirt and threaded with spider lace.

Sakura was starting to show signs of weariness. As she struggled to stay awake, Syaoran pulled her away from the pool's deceptive waters, clearing the dust away from the floor whilst he helped prop her against a crumbling wall.

Fai glanced around the hall as if seeing it for the first time. It had been so grand, he remembered. The icy domed ceiling would stretch far above him, arching like a sky of crystal, the walls smooth and shiny, and the floor glassy and untainted.

Everything was gone. The wizard wondered how Ashura must have felt suddenly awakening to see the great hall transformed into what it was now, how horrifying it must have been, and he, the cause of this terrible transformation, standing in front of the king with only his guilt.

Fai's hands encircled his pale throat, feeling the skin Ashura had touched, rubbing his thumb over the veins Ashura had tried to pierce. Chi sidled towards him and his hands fell away.

"Chi," Fai squatted besides his creation. "I'm sorry for leaving you alone for so long."

"Chi doesn't mind. Chi is happy that Fai is here now," Chi's tinkering voice echoed somewhere in the caverns in Fai's restless mind.

He petted the smooth curves of the living net. "I won't be for very long."

It was hard to gauge a reaction against something with no face but Fai would liked to have believed that Chi was at least a little surprised, maybe even a tad dismal that he would be leaving again so soon.

"Chi...could not help?" the net-like creature seemed slightly distressed.

Fai shook his head. "No, you were a lot of help," he pulled her closer, rewarding her with a more thorough petting to which the creature purred with content.

The wizard murmured praise into where he thought her ear might be, telling her how good she was. Chi moved closer, slipping slightly across the frozen floor.

"What should Chi do now?"

"Whatever Chi wants. Chi is free" he smiled and attempted to whistle, failing miserably.

The net-like creature cocked her body to one side. "Free? What is free?"

"It means that you can do whatever you want," he explained, though, when he thought about it, there was not much that she could do in that form.

He had transformed her, turned her into a barrier, a blockade to hinder Ashura's awakening, an obstacle to keep the king away from him. Cowardly and cruel, leaving her alone to over a hundred years to fester in the darkness as the castle decayed around her. He turned his eyes away from her strange form. Her loneliness had been his fault. It was the same with Ashura, was it not? Now it was the same with Kurogane too. It was his fault. Everything, somehow, always turned out to be his fault.

"Sorry, Chi, I gave my tattoo to the witch," he sighed. It felt particularly appealing to blame the dimensional witch for everything right now but he was neither quite weak nor stupid enough to sink that low.

Chi waved a limb, indicating a shake of her head. "Chi does not mind," she assured her master and creator. She would stay as she was, without features or a face forever. He could not allow that.

"No, I'll turn you back anyway," he stood, backing away from his creation. He made an odd sound in his throat; it sounded much like a cross between an attempted whistle and a sigh.

He had no staff, no tattoo either. Gone. All sold to the witch for precious items to carry him further through worlds, further away from Ashura. In the end, all they had done was hasten their arrival to Celes.

He had no staff, no tattoo either, but he still had magic. As reluctant as he was to use it, he still had his magic, burning like wildfire through his veins. His fists clenched the fabric of his robes. He would use it now. He would, for Chi, he would.

Hesitating, he stepped forward again. Do it, he urged. Do it, he told his quivering heart. He had transformed Chi into what she was and now he had to turn her back. It was the right thing to do, right?

Picking up a stray stone, he etched a line into the floor. Scraping the sharp edge of the stone over the frozen floor, his lines became arches then circles, growing, blooming into spirals and squares, squiggles and wild strokes.

When it was done, Fai wiped his hands clean of dust. This would do. The power of the magical circle would help substitute the power he lost from his staff, it would help direct his energy and prevent any errors from occurring.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Take a deep breath and hold your arms wide, wide, wider still, as if you can embrace the sky, hold the heavens in your arms. Breathe in. Breathe out. Take a deep breath and let your magic sing.

The sudden eruption of colour within the gloomy hall threatened to eradicate all traces of shadow. Large tendrils of light spun around the magician, speeding around him before swirling around his creation. They enveloped her, forming a tight cocoon around Chi's body. In a second burst of light, they exploded, evaporating into the air and leaving behind only glimmers of their light.

Chi stood examining her arms and legs. Her golden hair fell past her hips, her furry ears twitching. There was surprise on her face, then happiness and then a look of content, going through as many emotions as she could, as if she had forgotten each expression. Her eyes were filled with warmth when she smiled at Fai, exactly the same as the day he had left her. Time had not affected her either.

He smiled. It was all so painful. Her face was the reflection of hope and innocence, bringing back memories of those happier times now lost forever in the recess of his mind, banished to remain only a memory.

Fai stepped away from his servant, leaving Chi in favour of the darker hallways and columns of crumbling marble.

"So that's transformation magic."

Fai turned.

"Kuro-chii..."

The ninja's hand shot towards him, seizing him by his collar. Fai felt his back slam against one of the columns, chips of marble coming loose under the sudden impact of his weight. The grip around his collar tightened and yanked him skywards, almost strangling him in a tick noose of wool and fur.

"Don't you dare use those stupid names on me! How can you even be so calm after what's happened!" the ninja seethed.

Fai glanced at the far figure of Syaoran, thoroughly absorbed in his care of his princess, and Chi, looking a little lost but not moving any closer or further from their point in the shadows.

"Kuro-sama, I - "

"Shut up!"

"Do you hate me?"

"What do you think?" Kurogane lifted him and slammed his back against the thick marble again. He brought his face close to Fai's, allowing the wizard to drown in the depths of his anger, his hatred, his hurt. "This is all your fault! Everything..." he paused, flinging Fai away from him, "everything...is your fault," he ended, though his voice seemed drained of its usual vigour.

Fai could not even comprehend how the ninja must have felt, to be betrayed in the most unimaginable way possible, how confused and angry he must feel. He could not even begin to fathom the idea.

He did not know why, but his vision was suddenly drawn to Souhi's hilt. He did not know why, but he suddenly wondered what it would be like to have a taste of that could steel.

He hated the thought of death and he hated pain even more but he wondered and wondered and felt himself becoming lost inside the fires of Kurogane's rage. It enveloped him and devoured him. It tore him to pieces.

When he spoke, his voice was strangely calm.

"Are you going to kill me, Kuro-pon?"

A momentary flash of surprise was quickly concealed by his usual scowl. If anything, his hatred was only doubled by the wizard's sudden suggestion.

"Don't misunderstand," he spat, turning his back on the lithe blond, "I don't care whether Ashura tortures you for eternity or if you die in front of my eyes. I just want to get that feather and leave this freezing country, preferably without you!"

"That's too bad," he picked himself up, wiping away the chips of marble that clung to his clothes. "I hate the cold as well," he smiled.

XX

Sakura's vision was blurry. She felt groggy and disorientated and weaker than usual. Her vision swamped into a great pool of light before dimming and sharpening into the view of the hall around her.

She sat up, holding onto Syaoran for support.

"Are you okay, Sakura-hime?"

"Just tired," she smiled then turned her attention to the unknown figure standing across the pool. "Chi?" she tentatively asked. The girl was clothed in ice blue, her blonde hair reaching past her waist in two voluminous branches of gold. The girl looked at her and smiled. It was Chi, she was certain of it.

Fai and Kurogane joined her by the waters and Sakura suddenly felt inclined to edge away. She had no idea what happened whilst she was with Kaede or Chi, or even if such a change had occurred whilst she slept, but they seemed different. Electric tension filled the space between them, ready to explode at a moment's notice.

The two seemed not to notice her sudden apprehension. She was not scared of them; of course she was not. Rather, she was scared _for _them. What had been casual and natural were suddenly forced and artificial. Fai's ever-bright smiles, Kurogane's perpetual frown, each and every nuance seemed to take a great deal of energy and strain to create.

Sakura shook of the foreboding feeling for now. More pressing issues pressured her to her feet.

"The thing in that chamber," she said as she shakily rose, "that was causing the epidemic. It's sucking the life from the land."

Fai stared at her. "What do you mean?"

"Chi told me that in order to give warmth, it has been draining the earth!" she explained, remembering her time in the chamber where the Solar magnet lay.

Fai turned towards Chi, eyes slightly wide.

"Chi was alone for a long time," the girl replied to her creator's unspoken question, "a long, long time to think and realise."

The magician nodded. "The Solar magnet is..." he coughed, suddenly loosing his great talent of speech. He broke off abruptly. "Then...then Fei Wong Reed...he..." Fai trailed of, seeming to speak more to himself than to any of his fellow travellers.

"Is there any way into the chamber?" Syaoran pressed, still insistent upon retrieving the feather as quickly as possible. Fai glanced at him. He too wanted to get the feather and move worlds as quickly as possible. He wanted to run again. Run as far away as possible.

"If Ashura-ou has sealed it with magic then the only option would be to tackle the source of the seal," he began pacing back and forth, suddenly restless, suddenly unlike himself. "Don't worry, Ashura needs my power before the thing inside reacts so nothing will happen unless I am in the chamber as well."

"Where do we find the source?"

He shrugged then as an after thought remembered that he should be smiling. "Who knows? Most likely, there will be a good deal of magical traps set up to protect it."

"So all we have to do is look for wherever the magic is the strongest?" Syaoran caught on.

Sakura watched Fai nod, feeling groggy again. Mokona jumped onto her shoulder, snuggling into the crook of her neck as she felt sleep take over again.

XX

Syaoran left his sleeping princess in Mokona's watchful care. The castle was big but not so big that they would be unable to understand each other without Mokona's presence. The girl Fai had transformed, Chi, made to follow them then had paused and decided against it.

They followed Fai's lead, going wherever his 'magical intuition' took them. Of course, this meant passing by the same column five times in a row, much to Kurogane's annoyance, sure the magician was only doing so to irritate him.

However, after travelling down several flights of crumbling stairs, identical icy passages and around that 'damnable column' a grand total of twelve times, they finally seemed to be nearing their goal. The sudden springing of traps and attacking wooden mannequins was a sure sign of that.

"Well, at least we know that we're getting warmer!" Fai grinned and managed a semi-whistle whilst he dodged a swift uppercut from one of the mannequins.

The traps that lay dormant for years suddenly sprung into motion with vitality. Every single defence in the castle seemed suddenly intent of stopping them in their tracks. Souhi flashed and Hein roared in flames, cutting and slicing, sweeping steel through all obstacles. Fai leapt away from harm, whistling and cheering them on.

Syaoran was unsure how far they had travelled into the castle's dingy depths or for just how long they had been running until Fai called them to a halt. Without a word, the wizard led them into a small, dark room.

Hein's flame produced the little light for which they navigated in and out of the broken furniture and fallen trappings. The room was small and cold, a little box of darkness. In the light of the flames, Syaoran could only just make out the etching of a dark grey seal on the room's chilly floor.

"Is this...the seal?" he asked as the wizard crouched next to it.

"Sort of," Fai replied, looking highly amused.

That the magician was finding any sort of entertainment in their near-death experiences irritated the ninja even more. "Sort of?" he narrowed his eyes at the blond, perhaps hoping he could stab the man with his gaze alone.

"I guess that I should've known," Fai rose his sunshine shield in defence. He pointed to parts of the charcoal seal. "See these lines? It's rigged so that when the first seal breaks the doors will be sealed shut with a second, stronger seal."

"Is it possible to break the second one too?" Syaoran crouched besides him, inspecting their latest obstacle.

"We would have to search for the source of the second seal and seeing that I didn't stumble upon it first, its magical presence is probably hidden."

Kurogane glowered at the wizard's back. "How do I know that you're not making this up?"

Fai turned towards him, smiling softly. "Would I lie at a time like this, Kuro-chi?"

"Who knows?"

"The doors won't shut immediately. There will be a pause before the second seal takes effect," Fai explained, turning away from the volatile ninja.

"Give me five minutes. I'll be by the chamber by then," Syaoran stood, ready to retrace his steps to the chamber that Ashura-ou had so unceremoniously flung Sakura and Chi from.

"Wait," Kurogane halted the boy in his eager tracks. "I'm going too."

XX

Even as Kurogane ran, he found that he could only think of the past and the man he had left alone in that small room. Why had he not killed Fai yet? He wanted to and yet he did not want to. He told himself that it was his curse; killing someone so pathetic would not be worth the loss in strength that he would suffer thereafter but that was a lie and he knew it.

At least punch him, he thought, but he had not done that either. He wanted the man to suffer but could not find the energy to do it himself. One small, almost hidden side of him reasoned that Fai had had no choice in making the demons, that he had not been the one who sent them to his world but the larger portion of his brain ruled out that fact. Fai had created them. He had started it. It was his fault.

Unsure of what to think, he ran on. Every passage looked the same, every trap seemed to spring again and again, and every guard seemed a clone of the other. He was lost in this strange world and lost to himself. He did not know what to think about Fai, about anything and so his anger raged wildly, directed at everything and anything within reach.

Souhi sliced through another mannequin, bringing down one after another. He destroyed each one like something possessed. Every dumb, wooden body must be cleared from his sight.

Something lithe and blonde moved in front of his path of destruction. Kurogane let out a cry of surprise; barely managing to stop himself before his sword sliced the figure in two.

"Chi-san?" Syaoran looked bewildered

Kurogane scowled at the girl. "What the heck is it now?"

"You're going the wrong way," the net-turned-girl spoke softly, almost inaudibly, with a sugary-sweet voice that irritated the ninja. "The way to Ashura-ou is that way," she pointed to a second passage, one that twisted away from their trail.

"The door that the king passed through is this way," Syaoran pointed to their original path.

"The way to Ashura-ou is that way," Chi insisted.

Kurogane examined the girl. Her strange furry ears and impossibly long, blonde hair framed a cute, innocent face. Though he knew better than to trust someone on looks alone, her eyes only spoke of unwavering loyalty to the one who had created her and did not seem capable of lies. If Chi was indeed telling the truth, that could only mean one thing.

"That bloody wizard! He lied!"

"Fai-san wouldn't - "

"Like hell he would!" he snapped, trampling towards the passage Chi had indicated. He was so busy seething and fuming and plotting just what he would do to that damn wizard when he saw him again that at first he did not notice the dainty footsteps hurrying after him. He stopped and tuned. "Why the heck are you coming?"

Chi stared at him with unblinking amber eyes. "Do you...do you not like Fai?" she asked with only simple curiosity in her voice.

"I hate him," he muttered and stalked away. Chi followed.

"Hate?"

"It's when you really don't like someone."

Chi's neutral expression turned into a sad frown. Great, why was he suddenly the bad guy?

"Why?"

"Eh?"

"Why do you hate"  
"Because - " Kurogane began, tired of having to explain each and every thing, but found that he had no answer to give. Exactly why did he hate the wizard so much? Would he have hated the wizard any more or less if he had found out when they were still very much strangers, unacquainted and new to the business of dimension hopping? Did he even hate him at all?  
"Is hate close to love?" Chi interrupted his thoughts.

Kurogane scowled. "The complete opposite!"

"Then why do people find it easier to hate the people they should love?"

He stopped and turned on the tiny blonde. He had not thought it possible, but he had finally found someone more annoying than Fai and that damn manjuu put together! Why did she have to constantly ask him such stupid questions? Why him? More importantly, if her questions were so stupid, why did he have no answers?

"Chi-san," Syaoran interrupted, sensing the ninja's increasingly foul mood, "may I ask a favour? Please, could you look after Sakura-hime?"

"Chi!" she nodded.

"Thank you!" the boy grinned and Chi stopped to watch him and his surly mentor disappear down a twist in the passage.

She waited for their shadows to pass the bend and their footsteps to recede into the distance.

"Chi is very sorry," she apologised as she walked back. "However, Fai said so himself, that Chi may do whatever Chi wishes."

* * *

Went back and corrected a few typos, though I reckon there are still a few lurking around in there. Thanks to those who pointed them out. Anyway, as always, comments are always appreciated. 


	9. Chapter IX

I know it was a long wait but finally we've reached the last and final chapter. Thank you very much for your patience and I hope you enjoy reading.

* * *

I capture the castle

Chapter IX

XX

There was a reason for everything. All things moved according to one divine will, events ordering themselves as destiny saw fit. It was Fate. Hitsuzen.

Fai moved slowly, his limbs made heavy with dread and doubt. He had never been the one to fight when there were always yet others to fight in his stead or better yet an alternative. He had never liked the thought of pain but this time he had chosen willingly to fight and to fight alone.

Kurogane would be pissed, though, thinking about it, the ninja was already annoyed to the point of actually committing homicide, curse or no, that one more irritation could do no more harm. Besides, he wanted to be alone with Ashura.

Even as he travelled down the crumbling passageways, passing broken stone and cracked walls, he could feel security tighten. That was good. More mannequins and other assorted traps only meant he was getting closer and closer to his goal.

He kept a ball of translucent energy in his hand shooting it at the wooden mannequins that hobbled his way. They moved rigidly. The mannequins came at him and surrounded him. It took a fair amount of time to get them to crumbled around him, disintegrating into dust. Fai moved on. It did not really matter if he used magic now, did it? He had already come this far, already used his power and would have to use even more of it in the near future.

The door was emblazoned with a dark red seal. The back door was almost identical to the front; almost identical to the door he had sent Syaoran and Kurogane on their clueless way towards.

Security was tighter the closer he got to the door. It was not that they were particularly tough but that there were so many of them. Those attack mannequins, like a swarm of flies, caused him to slow his pace and forced him to proceed with some caution.

To the right or to the left, sometimes right in front of his eyes. He gritted his teeth and swept them away. There was no time to admire how annoyingly persistent Celes' security could be. When one was knocked down, if he did not destroy it properly, it would just get back up for more.

The door was close now. He could almost stretch out and feel the frozen stone beneath his fingertips. Memories flooded and choked him, trapping him in a web of frozen images.

The fallen mannequins behind him shuddered to their feet and lunged. Fai shook off the cobwebs of memory just in time to turn. His magic rushed to his aid but they were so close and all he could think about was of a time when the door behind him had seemed so big.

"Get down!" he heard someone scream before a body forcefully collided into him, stealing his breath as he hit and rolled across the uneven floor.

"Kurogane!" he choked, hardly noticing that he had pronounced the ninja's name in its complete and full glory for the second time that day. He saw flames in the corner of his eye and realised that Syaoran was forcing back the mannequins. "I thought you said that you didn't care what happened to me," he said, not bothering to ask just why they were here. He supposed that he could figure that one out on his own.

"Don't get me wrong," the ninja growled. "I hate the way you pretend to smile, how you always run, how you laugh and act like a fool. I hate your principals, I hate the way you think!"

"Then why - "

"Idiot! You don't get it, do you, you fool?" he yelled, almost burying his fist into the mage's head in hopes of getting some oxygen to that woefully irritating brain.

He opened his mouth again but then closed it. How could he say it? What words could possibly be enough to tell this stupid wizard? He hated the man. He hated him and wanted him to live, not just exist, but really live the life he had. He wanted him to suffer and see him laugh until he cried, or cry until he laughed, he forgot which way around they went. He wanted to yell and shout and shake him and speak in soft whispers. That he did not know just what he wanted to say himself made it all the more worse.

He wanted to say more but those few words were firmly lodged in his throat. He had never been one to think before speaking or waste moments fretting over the choice of words and he certainly never regretted the things he said but somehow this was different. It was too close, too real. Everyone, even the best of people, had barriers and these words lay too close inside those protective walls. So no words. Only forceful gazes and gritted teeth and eyes that wished they could strangle.

"I see," Fai murmured, looking at nothing in particular whilst he gazed at everything. Perhaps he muttered something else, perhaps there was nothing more to say but he moved away then and Kurogane failed to catch what little snatches of truth Fai decided to shed.

Perhaps nothing was said but something certainly happened, though he could not discern what it was. A spell, perhaps, or maybe just simple confusion, for he was sure that for a moment the mage had vanished from his sight and when he blinked again he was further away.

"What the hell?" He shot before realising just where he was and just where Fai was "Hey!" he yelled at the idiot as he began doing all sorts of magical things to the door that Kurogane did not understand

"I'll be okay," Fai assured him, though he had never expressed any concern for the mage, he would have liked to believe that somewhere, for a second, he had seen the barest hint of panic in those red eyes.

"What the hell - " Kurogane paused mid-sentence. His words were stuck between demanding what the hell that magician thought he was doing and what the hell was happening, causing a second clog in his throat.

The magician turned towards the ninja just as he released the seal on the door. "Don't you remember, Kuro-tan?" he smiled so softly that the ninja could have been fooled to thinking that it was real. "You told me so a while ago. You said it yourself - that I am not weak."

XX

The doors closed behind him. He heard them slam and saw the ice blue seal replacing the broken red one without having to turn around. What lay behind him did not matter. His world was concerned with this room and the person currently sharing the room with him.

"Fai," Ashura was crouching besides the Solar magnet but he stood as the door resealed. His eyes were closed and unreadable, his face taking on a permanent frown. For a moment, they stood staring at each other, a brief eternity in which they recognised each other's existence, simply accepting without judging, without thinking of the past. Fai and Ashura. Wizard and King. Just two people standing in one room. It was simple.

Then the spell broke and the memories and emotions clogged the room. Broken ambitions and failed dreams turned the air black and the strings of conflict tied them together once again.

"Ashura-ou, enough. Is there really a need for this?" Fai nodded towards the great construction standing erect in the middle of the chamber. His nails dug into the palms of his hands, almost drawing blood.

Ashura glared at him. "Of course there is! The people - "

"The people are suffering because of this!" he cried. Why? What did he have to do to convince Ashura of that? His hands clenched by his side. All this time, all this pain, everything that he had been through and everything that he felt now was all one man's fault! How could they have been so blind? How could this have happened?

The fury and frustration threatened to burst inside of him. His mask, his perfect composure was crumbling into dust before him.

"Fei Wong Reed…he gave us a device that would bring prosperity to our land but all the while it's been draining us, forcing us to rely on him even more and offer him ever more of our powers! He tricked us!"

Ashura looked at him through eyes that could shot daggers, full of scepticism, full of mistrust.

"I'm not lying to you, Ashura-ou!" he cried out in earnest, willing for some miracle to happen, that Ashura would believe him. Just once. If he just believed this and nothing else, that would be enough. If he just believed him this once maybe they could be saved.

Ashura shook his head. "I have nothing else," he murmured, running his fingers across the cool smoothness of the Solar magnet. "Everything I knew has gone, everything except this."

I'm here. What about me? Fai wanted but refused to say. He slowly gained control again, slowly dragging back a smile from the bottom of his being to force onto his lips. He should have known. After what he did, Ashura would have to be stupid and mad to believe him again but still, even so, he would keep trying.

Taking one cautious step forward, he tried to reason with his king. "We'll make something new then. Let's just stop this. Fei Wong Reed deceived us; he never wanted to help us! He used us and gave us a sun that slowly sucked up the life of our land! This thing that he gave us is draining Celes and will continue to do so unless we destroy it!"

He trembled ever so slightly, straining to keep a calm appearance. Was there really a need for such pretences? He wondered what it would be like to suddenly break down and start screaming and shouting at Ashura, at himself, at everything.

Yet the king continued to shake his head. They stood on either end of the chamber, separated by several feet of floor, one giant mechanism and over a hundred years of distance. The invisible glass wall erected between them was clouded with feelings, words neither would say, emotions neither would act upon.

Ashura's eyes grew gentle whenever he looked upon the contraption. In it were all his dreams, everything that he had ever worked for standing proudly before him. "The feather will change that. Your skill with transformation and the power of the feather will make it safe! We'll have an eternal sun and a beautiful blue sky!"

"You don't know that!" Fai's voice strained and echoed across the chamber. "Things could get worse! Things _are _getting worse but you're so obsessed that you can't see it!"

"Maybe I am," Ashura's voice fell softly. "I just wanted to see it, Fai, just once, a blue sky. Just once. I have spent years in search of it. If this is wrong then what did I live for?" he wondered and for a moment, Fai was able to glimpse a piece of the past he thought had been lost forever.

"You lived for the people. You were our king."

"Not any more. Time has taken that," he turned, eyes turning hard again, he fixed Fai with a cool glare "_You_ have taken that. This is all I have," he gestured to the huge contraption, to the Solar magnet in the centre.

Fai swallowed back the bitter taste of the guilty. It was true. He was the one who had sealed Ashura. He could say there was no choice, claim that it was for the greater good and whether of not that was true was irrelevant. He had sealed Ashura and ran.

In the end, was everything his fault? If he had been able to support Ashura better, if he had been able to keep the king from Fei Wong Reed's manipulative clutches, if he had never pushed such expectations onto Ashura in the first place maybe, just maybe, things would never have turned out this way.

There was no turning back. They were both caught up in events beyond their control, tumbling downwards like a boulder, unable to stop.

This would be the end.

Fai knew it. Ashura knew it. They both could tell without speaking; the resolve in each other's eyes, the wavering, conflicting emotions, the wishes and desires each held all finally laid bare.

This would be the end.

Ashura moved first. He picked up pieces of sharp crystal that had broken away from the wall. Light erupted around him. Soaring birds of translucent colour swooped overhead. They swirled and finally landed upon the hand that held the crystal. It took on their translucent glow, stretching, transforming into something else.

As the light dulled, a simple crystal sword lay in Ashura's hand. The blade itself was tinted with blue, shining with a sharp, honest edge. Fai mimicked the king's actions, his weapon of choice a long staff.

There was no time to stop and stare. The minute their weapons were fully formed they collided. Magic burst forth and ran in streams, filling the air with its heady scent. It tore the room apart whilst weapons clashed beneath.

Fai aimed blasts at the Solar magnet whilst he tried to defend against Ashura's assault. The mechanism shuddered and groaned under the barrage. The blade ripped through his robe and sliced into skin. He gritted his teeth and leapt away, aiming again for the Solar magnet. Ashura moved to block it but Fai took the sudden opening to slash at him. Light spiralled and swerved as if it had a life of its own. With a yell, he focussed his energy into destroying the thing, not caring about the wounds he suffered in consequence.

A burst of light erupted around the contraption. Smoke and dust formed and mushroom cloud around it as it toppled and fell.

Ashura's face was livid yet still it managed to remain beautiful even contorted with rage. Fai smiled at his fury and they charged.

Ashura's sword swung down in a descending arch whilst Fai took the opening created to run him through with his staff, leaving him completely exposed to Ashura's blade. A double-kill - what an ironic way to go and yet, somehow, Fai did not mind. It was always the pain of dying and not the actual death that he feared more.

He closed his eyes as he thrust, hearing the sound of metal through flesh. He froze. He felt dizzy, almost afraid to move. His heart shuddered and seared with pain. He could feel the warmth of blood, smell its hot, metallic scent and yet he knew.

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.

XX

He allowed himself into Ashura's study, bearing a tray. The study was full of books and scrolls filling shelves that reached dizzying heights. It was spacious but the dim lighting and piles of text gave it a cramped and cluttered impression.

Ashura stood by the window overlooking the land below. From the open window, Fai could hear the sound of voices, light, happy children's voices, floating through.

"Goal!" one of them cried triumphantly.

"You cheated!"

"Who cheated? A win is a win! I captured the castle!" the other retorted as he ran, feet sending powdered snow flying through the air.

Fai smiled. He remembered that game, though he could not recall ever playing it more than once. The door to the study closed behind him and he crept closer to the desk.

"Ashura-ou?" he glanced at his king. He seemed more distracted, more distant than usual.

Ashura looked at Fai, only just realising the man's presence. He murmured a small "oh, Fai," before turning back to the window with a cloudy gaze.

"Ashura-ou?" Fai tried to steal a glimpse of his king's face as he set the tray onto the desk.

"Why are people so greedy, Fai? The more they have, the more they want. Why are people never satisfied? Why do people always want more?"

"That's just the way people are," Fai shrugged, though Ashura was obviously not content with such an explanation. His demeanour turned sour and his lips turned down in a frown.

"It's no good. No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, they always complain, they always want more!" He cried, slamming his hand against his desk. Paper and pots of ink jumped under the impact.

"Ashura-ou, don't trouble yourself," Fai tried to soothe his king's dissatisfaction.

Placing the tray in front of him like some divine offering, he took his place by the window, feeling the cold air chill his skin. The children were laughing against a sheet of white nothingness.

"There's no way that everyone can be happy."

XX

"From the very start, you were always a selfless person," Fai caught Ashura as he slumped, warm blood seeping from the fresh wound. Crimson spread across the king's body, seeping everywhere, unstoppable. He lowered his king to the ground, lying him on his back where he could look upwards to the stars.

There was blood on his hands. Dark, sinful, crimson stains. He breathed and took a moment just to check that he was alive only to be disappointed by the results. His body ached, his skin was littered with cuts, and his flesh felt pounded to the bone but he was still very much alive. Something crept up his throat and choked him. How could this be? Why was his heart beating so fast? It was wrong. This should not be happening. It was all so wrong!

Yet he suppressed the fear dancing in his eyes, pushed all the terror and pain running about inside of him to the furthest recesses of his being and held his king with gentle hands stained with blood.

"You were always dreaming of better things but when those dreams did not turn out as you wished they only turned to dissatisfaction. When you were asleep, did you have good dreams?" he asked, quietly trembling, silently crying, holding back the tide of emotions within him.

"Dreams?" Ashura chuckled but ended up in a coughing fit. "When I close my eyes all I see is a blue sky. You should know that."

"I thought that, if I died, you would be free. This thing would fail and you would be free of that spell Fei Wong Reed wrapped you in," he whispered, afraid to speak any louder for fear that his words would chase away what little life remained in Ashura's body.

Ashura made an odd sound, something akin to a half-snort, half-laugh. "Too bad, things don't work out for you."

Was this what it felt like to be betrayed? He had carried out his part, it was Ashura-ou who had turned and deceived him. It was Ashura-ou who had betrayed him by not killing him. He felt wounded, stabbed in the back. If only that had not been so. If only they could have gone together. The sword of his fallen king lay a little way away from them but he could not bring himself to reach for it.

"Why didn't you kill me, Ashura-ou?" Ashura-ou smiled but all he offered was an ambiguous half-shrug. "Who knows?" he replied, yielding no answers, giving away nothing. In the end, there was nothing.

Fai returned Ashura's smile with one every bit as strained and painful as that of his king's. His hands were shaking as he ran his hand through black threads, soaking his fingers in an ebony sea. "All I wanted was for you to take me away from the war and the cold. We didn't have to be caught in our duty. I wanted us to be free."

Ashura turned his eyes to the ceiling and looked beyond it, to a future that could have been theirs or perhaps to a past that was lost forever. His eyes were beginning to cloud, steaming over on the inside, becoming clogged with memories, with the spirits of dead wishes.

When he spoke, his voice was rough and hoarse, unlike the usual liquid quality of his voice. "Fai," he turned to his subject, his last remaining subject in the world. "Was I a good king? Fai?"

The mage's hands returned to his side, clenched painfully, let his nails dig into the palm of his hand. "Of course!" he nodded vigorously, forcing his smile to remain ever bright. "You were the best! The best in the world…the best in all worlds."

"I see it," Ashura held a trembling hand towards Fai's face.

"Ashura-ou?"

"A smile as warm as the sun…eyes as blue as the sky. It was right there all along. Why did I never see it before?"

Fai fell silent, straining his ears for the sound of Ashura's heartbeat that he swore he could hear. He put a hand on his king's chest, feeling the warmth of the blood soak through, pressing lightly against the laboured rise and fall of his chest.

"I'm happy," he wiped away the tears that blurred his vision. He grinned; forcing himself to smile through the pain that tried to keep his lips curved downwards.

Let the sun shine for him, for his fallen king one last time.

"I'm happy that you finally found your blue sky, why wouldn't I smile? I'm happy for you," his voice trembled, pausing to take one long shuddering breath and regain his composure. It had been so easy back then, to lie and cover everything up with a smile, it had been second nature so why could he not do it now? "Very, very happy," he choked, forcing his last words out, though they wrenched at his throat.

Happy. That was right. He was so happy he was crying. He was not sad at all. Even the very thought of being sad, of wanting to break down, made him laugh through bitter tears.

"You finally reached your goal, just as you dreamed," he whispered, letting his words drift away from his lips, vanishing into the air.

Ashura smiled.

"Goal."

XX

"Chi can do whatever she wants," she echoed her creator's words, spinning them over and over again in her mind, still trying to grasp the entirety of his words. She was free. She could do whatever she wanted. What did she want to do? "Chi can do whatever she wants but Chi only wants Fai to be happy."

She paused, listening to the wind play through the castle's wing-like projections. Holding her hands to her ears, she listened intently for whatever wisdom they might impart. Perching precariously upon the highest torrent, she closed her eyes to the snow drifting around her, to icy ground far below her.

"Fai can be happy without Chi. Fai has found people to be with," she said. It was happy thought yet why did she feel like crying? That he could be happy without her, that he could find happiness on his own could make her feel such joy and such pain.

She smiled and felt something hot and wet trace the way down her cheek. It made no sense. How could she be happy and sad too? How could she smile and feel tears near her eyes at the same time? Perhaps she was so happy, she was almost crying.

"Chi too," she decided. "Chi will find someone to be with. Someone for me and only me."

XX

"It's a shame you couldn't stay longer but I wish you the best of luck on your journey," Kaede

Grey light and a white sky filled the wide heavens, as if the town had been drawn on a piece of paper.

"I told you, didn't I?" she giggled into Sakura's ear. "Things will get better. Already, some of the people are recovering from the epidemic."

"Well, I say that it's about time to be off, eh?" Fai grinned. Sakura glanced at him. Even though he was right, they had retrieved the feather from Ashura's cloak, as they had desired, it had not even been a full twenty-four hours and already he had returned to being his usual self.

"Is it okay? What about Chi?" she tilted her head to a side, wondering about that strange, blonde girl Fai had created long ago.

It was a shame that she could not travel with them, she was sure that Chi's presence would make Fai happy too, but what would she give the witch in return? Did Chi even wish to travel with them? The girl had disappeared right after the commotion.

Fai seemed to sense Sakura's mood and patted her on the back. "Of course, Chi knows what she wants. She has her own goals too."

She nodded, though she did not look the least convinced.

"Hmm? You mean, is it okay for me to leave like this?" Fai laughed. "I don't see why not. After all, there's nothing left here for me anyway," he shrugged.

Kurogane coughed and turned away from their party. "So? What will you do now?" he asked, refusing to look the man in the eye.

"Me?" Fai scratched his cheek with a finger, pretending to ponder for a moment. He grinned. "I guess I might try living."

Kurogane remained silent whilst Syaoran nodded and turned away, casting his glance over the snowy scenery for one last time.

"Fai-san!" he clutched the wizard's sleeve, turning the man's attention to the looming castle in the sky. "They're taking down the castle!" he cried, seeming more distressed than the wizard did.

He turned towards the castle. The men that had recovered or had not been affected by the epidemic were hauling carts up the spiralling stairs, setting rope teams to carefully take the looming figure down piece by piece.

"I see," he murmured. He was well aware of the looks and worried glances his companions were giving him as he took a deep breath, drinking down Celes' sweet, frozen air one last time. He stretched, reaching his arms above his head to the colourless sky. When they came down, he was smiling. "Well, let's be off shall we?"

Mokona leapt into the air, opening its mouth to suck them in. The wind pulled at their hair and clothes, butterflies of light dancing around them.

Through the threads of multicoloured light weaving around him, Fai turned his gaze back to the castle the peasants no longer feared. In the brilliance of Mokona's magic, he allowed his smile to drop just a little until it wavered between the lines of a smile and a frown.

Each dark stone was being pulled away bit by bit, so slowly that it was hardly recognisable. Slowly, they were dismantling his past, removing all traces that he and his king had ever existed.

Biting back the feeling that bubbled just beneath him, gripping his clothes so that his hands would not shake, he directed the last of his light towards the castle, the castle soaked in memories, the castle in which Ashura had lived.

He smiled.

"Goal."

* * *

That was a very long chapter but it's finally over! Thanks again and I hope that you enjoyed reading as much as I did writing this. Bows


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